


Mine or Yours

by LeMera (Agha)



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, NOT OT3, Not Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Compliant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-12
Updated: 2017-05-21
Packaged: 2018-07-10 20:12:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 31,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7004689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Agha/pseuds/LeMera
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The morning after, Steve pretended like nothing happened, which felt like a punch in the gut. They were off to find Bucky. That was all Steve would talk about. Bucky, Bucky, Bucky. Sam was going to fucking kill Bucky when they found him, if the guy didn't kill them first.</p>
<p>Just to be clear, this is not OT3.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This started off as Sam/Steve and got a life of its own ended up as Sam/Bucky. So it's got a bit Sam/Steve in the beginning, but is eventually Sam/Bucky. You've been warned.  
> NOT OT3  
> NOT Civil War compliant

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has Steve/Sam having an explicit sex scene at the end. If you want to skip it, it starts after the * and goes all the way to the end of the chapter. This story IS going to end up being Sam/Bucky in the next chapter, and it's going to get explicit between them too. Just so everyone's aware and no one reads anything they don't want to read ;)

The morning after, Steve acted as if nothing had happened. He smiled at him in the morning, asked what he wanted for breakfast, and said Natasha had called in with a new lead while Sam was in the shower. As if he hadn't just been balls deep inside of Sam just a few hours ago, and hadn't had to take the first shower to get Sam's cum off his chest.

Fine. Sam could act norma, if that was how Steve wanted to play it.

He wasn't hurt per say. Yes, sure, it sucked that the guy he had a crush on finally showed signs to liking him back, only to immediately withdraw and pretend he didn't. But it wasn't as if they'd made any declarations of love, or made any promises.

While Steve drove and chattered as if everything was fine, Sam fretted over their night together. Had he been too pushy? Too desperate? Shown how much it matter to him too soon? Had he scared Steve off somehow?

But Steve didn't look scared off. He was just acting like he had on this entire road trip from hell.

Maybe Sam had imagined what happened last night. Only his ass begged the differ.

Sam decided that if Steve wasn't going to bring it up, he would, so when they stopped for lunch he cleared his throat and said very seriously, "About last night..."

Which was, of course, when Steve's phone rang. "It's Natasha," he said apologetically, and promptly answered. Sam sucked on the straw for his milkshake, waiting patiently. It wasn't going to be anything new. Another Hydra base had probably been found, burned down, just like the last ones, Bucky long gone.

That was all Steve cared about. Bucky. Sam had known that, signing up for this. But he hadn't expected Steve to talk about him  _all the fucking time_. Bucky, Bucky, Bucky. Sam was going to fucking kill Bucky when they found him, if the guy didn't kill them first.

Because at this point they didn't know if Bucky was a good guy or not. They just knew he hated Hydra just as much as they did, which, hey, who could blame the guy.

"We should drive north," Steve said. "There is supposed to be a Hydra safe house there, Bucky might've holed up there for the time being.

"Right," Sam said numbly, and slurped up the rest of his milkshake. It went to fast though, and he got a brain freeze.

This fucking  _day_.

They were only halfway to their destination when it was time for dinner. Sam decided that  _this_ time they were going to talk about it. They were going to eat, feel satisfied, and they were going to talk about Steve screwing his brains out the night before because Sam needed to  _know_. He needed to know what it meant. If Steve had feelings for him, or if he had just been convenient at the time.

So they ate. They got satisfied. Steve smiled at him across the time. And Sam said "About last night." Steve didn't react, so Sam stumbled over this words, but managed to push forward. "What was that about?"

"What do you mean?" Steve tilted his head, looking way too much like a confused puppy than should be humanly possible.

Sam was seriously starting to think that it had all been a dream after all. Maybe he'd just fingered himself too hard in the dream, and he'd woken up aching because of...

This was getting stupid. It  _did_ happen and Steve was going to talk about it damn it. Sam straightened out his shoulders, set his jaw, and opening his mouth to say, in  _detail_ , what exactly he meant.

"Last night when we-"

And of course, this was the exact moment James "Bucky" Barnes decided to sit his ass down next to Steve, startling him into silence. Steve stared at his former best friend with wide eyes, his mouth agape. He seemed caught somewhere between shock, fear, and disbelief.

Bucky was wearing a hoodie and a cap, which was basically  _clothes to hide your ass 101_ in the superhero business. His hair was long and unkept, and he'd grown and uneven beard, but otherwise he looked like he was in good shape at first glance.

"Hi," Bucky said tentatively, his voice scratchy as if he hadn't spoken in a while.

This startled Steve into action, and he immediately grabbed Bucky's arm, as if afraid he was about to run away. Bucky let him. "Hi," Steve said, voice incredibly soft.

"What's up," Sam said, voice considerably rougher. He reached into his jacket pocket as inconspicuously as possible.

Bucky eyed him warily. "You are?"

"Sam Wilson, the guy pointing a gun at your nuts," he responded, as he pulled back the safe on his weapon.

Bucky didn't react at that. He nodded, as if understanding. "I'm not here to hurt anyone." He turned his gaze back to Steve. "That was the last one."

"Last what?" Steve asked, voice still way too soft for a guy talking to a Hydra assassin.

"Hydra facility."

A flash of relief went through Sam at the words, even though he wasn't sure if they were true. He'd have to check into it with Natasha. But if they were true that meant... That meant that he could go home. That he could call his sister and tell her that her kids were just a little bit safer in the world. That Steve would finally get to put all this Hydra crap that's haunted him for almost a century to rest.

"I remember," Bucky said, and it's so sharp, so sudden, that Sam almost accidentally pulled the trigger. He quickly angled the gun upwards instead of towards Bucky's groin.

"You remember?" Steve repeated dumbly. He looked like he couldn't quite believe it. Bucky nodded. Steve lips pull into a smile so bright that Sam has to look away for a second. He knew it was irrational, but jealousy churned in his gut, because Steve never smiled at  _him_ like that.

Sam sighed deeply into his glass. He wished he'd ordered something way more alcoholic at this point.

Actually, that was not a bad idea.

"I'm going to..." he stopped talking when he realized that neither of his dinner dates were paying him any attention. They were too busy staring each other down. "Whatever. Just shout if he tries to kill you," he said, kicking Steve under the table. Once again, there was no reaction, and he left the time with another sigh.

Of- _fucking_ -course.

Sam had read enough romance novels and seen enough rom-coms to know that the long-lost love trumped the new guy every time (except for like  _The Great Gatsby_ but that one didn't end up particularly good for anyone). Sam didn't know if Steve and Bucky had ever... Done whatever it was two guys were allowed to do in the 1940s if they were in love. But if they had, that meant that this little crush that Sam had probably wasn't going to lead anywhere. Yesterday, he wouldn't have cared too much. He'd known that was how it was going into this trip, and he still loved Steve as a friend, would still follow him into the gates of hell. But now...

He went and sat a few booths down, making sure he had a clear view of Steve in case Bucky did in fact try to kill him.

*

It'd been so stupid, really. One of those classic romance novel bullshit accidents, where they'd ended up in a motel that was fully booked, and the only room available only had one bed. Of course they'd share, because there was no sofa and forcing anyone to sleep on a motel floor is just cruel. Besides, they'd both been bone tired, barely managing to get out of their clothes before they fell asleep on the bed.

It wasn't Sam's fault that his brain decided that this was the perfect opportunity to dream about strong arms and deep kisses and a hot breath over his...

And suddenly Sam was awake and achingly hard, and the object of his affection was pressed against his front because of-fucking-course he was the big spoon. Even though Steve was much bigger than him. He tried to wiggle away without waking Steve, but years at war had made him a light sleeper. He felt Sam's erection almost immediately.

Instead of pushing him away, or laughing it off as a thing that happens to everyone (which had been Sam's plan), he turned around until they were face to face and smiled at him. It took Sam's breath away. He ran his hand over Sam's bare stomach, making him even harder, down the trail of hair until they rested just above the hem of his boxers. Sam's breaths came out shorter, his brain still too tired to quite understand what was going on.

"Do you want?" Steve asked, and there was absolutely no mistake in what he meant.

Heat flooded Sam, together with a buzzing excitement he hadn't felt before. He had, in his tired, stupid state, started to  _hope_. Because if Steve wasn't pushing him away, was in fact propositioning him, that meant he liked Sam back. Right?

While Sam's mind whirred with this new information, Steve became uncertain and he pulled his hand back, looking away. "Sorry," he muttered.

Sam's hand shot out and grabbed Steve's arm, pulling their bodies closer together. "Yes," he breathed, his voice too loud in the silent room. "I want." He felt Steve's hot breath against his cheek, they were so close.

Steve smiled again, and pressed his hand back to the flat of his stomach, and then down to cup his erection over his boxers. Sam groaned loudly. "Yeah?" he teased.

Sam let go of his arm so that he could cup Steve's cheek. "Wanted this for a long time," he admitted, and leaned forward to kiss him.

The kiss was a bit awkward at first. Steve's lips were slack, and he seemed to almost freeze at the touch of their lips. Sam distantly wondered if Steve'd ever kissed a man before. If he'd ever kissed...

No. Nope. This was going to be between the two of them. For ocne something in this trip was going to be about Sam and Steve and have nothing to do with Steve and Bucky.

He kept peppering Steve with close-mouthed kisses until Steve relaxed and kissed him back enthusiastically. He opened his mouth, allowing Sam entrance, and Sam basically melted into him. He decide to start the kiss off slowly, their tongues tentative as they met. But Steve quickly kissed him deeper, trying to make it filthier, but kind of failing at it. His lips and tongue were clumsy, and Sam had to break the kiss momentarily to choke off a laugh.

Steve pulled back, looking betrayed, and Sam quickly patted his cheek comfortingly. "Sorry. It just kind of shows you haven't made out with anyone for over seventy years."

"I  _have_ kissed someone since I came back," Steve said indignantly. Then he pressed the heel of his hand against Sam's cock, making him lose track of the conversation of a second. When he came back, Steve snorted and gave him a shit-eating grin. "Sorry. It just kind of shows that you haven't been touched by anyone in a few years," he said, his voice high-pitched and teasing.

Sam laughed and shoved at his shoulder. He wanted to retort and say that he _had_. But truth was... Truth was, that he hadn't really been this close to anyone since Riley. He didn't mean sex; he'd done that a few times since. But he hadn't felt this connected, this giddy and happy and warm, in bed with anyone since forever. He reached out and pushed a few strands of hair out of Steve's face. His grin was soft and sweet, and Sam couldn't help but lean forward to kiss him again.

Steve allowed the kiss to go slower this time. He pulled their bodies flush together, and Sam felt something hard dig into his hip. Was that...?

_Holy shit_ , that was huge. He rolled his hips experimentally, and Steve let out a moan. Sam smirked into the kiss, which Steve must've noticed because he immediately shoved his hand down Sam's boxers and squeezed his aching cock.

"Jesus!" Sam exclaimed breathlessly, pleasure shooting through him.

Steve smirked and kept jacking him off. He was good at that, much better than making-out, and Sam quickly felt heat gathering at the pit of his stomach. But he didn't want to come yet. He wanted their first time together to last. At the same time he didn't really have it in him to tell Steve to stop because fuck that felt good.

He compromised by pushing Steve's boxers down and grabbing Steve's cock. That got him to stop jacking Sam off, too busy moaning in his own pleasure. Steve bucked into his hand, keening desperately.

"I've got you," Sam whispered and kissed him lightly. Steve's eyes were shut tightly, and his face scrounged up as if he was about to come. Sam pulled his hand over his length, and rubbed his finger against his slit. "You look so good, babe. Fuck, want to taste you." Steve let out a broken sob and came over Sam's hand. It was a glorious sight, the way Steve's face contorted and his back arched when he came. Sam still couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. He'd wanted to feel Steve come inside of him.

Steve openend his eyes slowly, giving a lazy smile. Sam smiled back. He went to cup his cheek again, but realized his hand was still covered in cum. Making a face, he liked his thumb clean.

"Jesus Christ," Steve groaned, closing his eyes again. "Don't do that, you'll make me go hard again."

Sam paused in his movement, a wonderful thought coming to him. "You can go again so soon?"

Steve peered at him and nodded. Sam smirked, and deliberately sucked his index finger clean. Steve bit his lip, and true to his word, his cock jumped slightly in excitement.

"Good," Sam said, and leaned forward to kiss him. Steve immediately kissed him back, his hand going up to scratch at Sam's head. "Want to feel you inside of me," he whispered against his lips.

Steve stilled and broke the kiss. "What?" he said, dumbfounded. His dick didn't seem as confused though, as it was already hard against Sam's thigh again. How hot wasn't  _that_?

"Want you to fuck me," he said, peppering kisses over Steve's neck and down his chest.

"How?" Steve wondered, still not moving.

_That_ was a good question. Sam was pretty unwilling to leave the warmth of the bed and get lube and condoms from a nearby store. A part of him was afraid that if he left this room, whatever magic was happening that got this whole thing started would disappear.

Then, suddenly, he remembered. "Natasha!"

"What?" Steve questioned, even more confused, but Sam was too busy scrambling off the bed to explain. He made it to one of their bags and tore it open. He hadn't known until about a week into their trip that Natasha had somehow sown a hidden compartment into the seam of his back while he wasn't watching. It had a small knife, hand-gun, a burner phone, and a bottle of lube and string of condoms. When they'd met afterwards he hadn't had the guts to ask, and she hadn't bothered to explain. Now, he understood that she'd been on to something.

He jumped back into bed with the lube and condoms, and went back to kissing Steve. Steve'd sat up while Sam was away, but he quickly melted back into the bed. Sam sucked in his lower lip between his teeth as he struggled with the lube. The cap opened and he accidentally squeezed out a bunch of lube over the sheets.

"Fuck, sorry," he muttered, closing the cap again. That was going to be annoying to the people cleaning the room later. He took a deep breath and pressed his hand against his dick, willing it to calm down. He needed to at least have some brain function if they were going to do this properly.

"Sam?" Steve said hesitantly. He looked like he was going to sit up again, and Sam put a hand in the middle of his chest to keep him down. He knew, technically, that he could in now way keep him down physically if Steve really wanted to get up, but Steve let himself be held down. Sam leaned down and kissed him, slower this time, as he re-opened the cap and squeezed some lube onto his fingers. He got on his knees, straddling Steve's hips, and reached behind himself to press a finger in.

Steve's hands moved up his thighs, and then followed his fingers to where he was fingering himself open. He touched the rim hesitantly. "Are you...?" Steve trailed off. "Are you sure?"

Sam managed to press one whole finger in, and grunted in response. "I just need to get prepped. You're not exactly a small boy."

Steve blushed, but he smiled. "You look good doing that."

Sam laughed, pressing in another finger hurriedly. "Yeah?" he panted. He grabbed Steve's cock in his other hand, which got Steve to buck off the bed. He squeezed around it, trying to figure if three fingers would be enough to prepare him. "This is going to be tight fit."

Steve looked a bit panicked at that. "We don't have to do this, Sam," he said hurriedly. "Not if it hurts you."

Sam snorted, pulling his fingers out. "Hurts me? This is going to feel great." He reached for the condom and pulled it over Steve's dick. Then he positioned himself above Steve, holding him at the rim of his hole. "Ready?"

Steve nodded, his mouth slack, as if he was unable to form words.

Sam pushed down, and reveled at the initial burn. Steve threw his head back, his breathing erratic, and his hands grabbed Sam's hips so tight it was sure to leave a bruise.

Probably unconsciously, Steve bucked his hips up, which got him deeper into Sam, but it went to fast and the burn wasn't as pleasant anymore. Sam yelped, supporting himself on Steve's chest.

"Sit still," he hissed. Steve immediately froze, allowing Sam to sink down the rest of the way on his own accord. He let out a lungful of air, twitching his hips experimentally to see if he was capable of movement.

Steve shoved his fist into his mouth, making animalistic noises. Sam couldn't help but smile at that.

"Feeling good, big boy?" he teased.

Steve looked up at him, his pupils blown wide. He nodded quickly, and pulled his hand out. "Do you?"

Sam got up on his knees again, allowing Steve's cock to get almost all the way out of him, before going down in a different angle. The tip of his cock hit against his prostate, and he let out a desperate moan. "Better than good."

Sam did most of the work, which he didn't mind too much to be honest, but eventually his thighs got tired and his dick was begging for release. "Touche me," he groaned, but Steve didn't seem to hear, too lost in the movements of Sam's hips. He huffed and grabbed his own dick. It didn't take too much for him to come over Steve's perfect, chiseled abs. He felt a twisted satisfaction at seeing his cum coat Steve's body.

As he came he squeezed tightly around Steve, and Steve shoved his hips up and came with a shout.

Sam winced when he pulled off, and collapsed beside Steve.

Steve stared at him, wide-eyed with wonder. "That was amazing."

"What can I say? I'm a natural." Sam kissed him and swallowed his laugh. 

His body was too tired to even consider getting up to wash. He was vaguely aware of Steve tying up the condom and throwing it away, but he didn't move off the bed either. Instead, he lied down on his side, and Sam once again got to be the big spoon as they fell asleep with smiles on their lips.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the part where it gets Sam/Bucky.
> 
> There is a very brief Steve/Bucky in this, but it ends up with Sam/Bucky. Be warned. I know people do not want to see Stucky in this, and this is NOT a Stucky story, but there is a brief thing between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that it's three chapters now...
> 
> This is unbeta'd, so if I change tense all of the sudden on some parts, I'm sorry and it's all my fault.

Steve and Bucky talk for a long time. When the diner closes, they move to a motel, and talk some more. They manage to get two separate rooms, and with a sad sigh he allows Steve and Bucky the and takes one room for himself. He does  _not_  spend the whole night fretting about the possibility of them fucking in the other room.

In the morning, Bucky is tense and distant, and Steve keeps sending him sad puppy-dog eyes. Sam has officially decided not to ask.

They make it to the airport, and that's when it gets messy. The plan, before Bucky, had been to get back to Sam's. He still has his job (he would be forever grateful that they let him go on this extended vacation), and his place is mostly intact. He also has two bedrooms, one of which was meant for Steve to crash in until he figured his shit out. Now they have a possibly-dangerous ex-Hydra assassin on their hands too, and Sam had no idea where they are supposed to put him.

Steve seems to have it all figured out though, because he calls Tony Stark and asks for his help to get a flight back to Washington, and while they wait they wait for the private jet he asks Sam if he's  _sure_  that it's okay that they stay at his until Bucky gets his life back on track. As if Sam offered already.

He assures Steve that yes, it's okay, because Steve is still his friend and Bucky has been through some shit and probably needs to relax somewhere safe for a bit. Bucky doesn't say anything during their whole conversation though, just keeps staring off into the distance. Same thing goes for the plane ride, the cab ride, and the arrival at Sam's. Steve keeps sending him hopeful glances, as if he's expecting Barnes to break into song or something.

Sam's place had gotten a bit dusty since he was last there, so he throws open some windows to get the air in and wipes the table clean. "Make yourself at home," he tells Bucky, who just nods and locks himself into the guest bedroom. Once he's out of sight, Steve seems to deflate, his shoulders hunching forward. "You okay, man?"

"He says he remembers," Steve says quietly. "Both who he was before he fell, and after."

Sam curses. That meant that he probably remembered all the things that Hydra made him do, which probably makes him feel pretty bad. He sighs and rubs his forehead. "Want me to talk to him?"

Steve looks uncertain. "I don't know if he'll be very open to anyone but me right now."

Sam shrugs. "Fine." He rubs his forehead again, at loss of words. "I'm going to bed, I'm exhausted." It wasn't a lie. Despite dozing off on the plane, he felt as if he might fall asleep on his feet at any moment.

"I'll take the couch," Steve says, which surprised Sam for a second. He doesn't protest though. Sam is not the one who gave away his guest room to Bucky, so he doesn't see why he has to be the one to suffer for it.

He pats Steve on the back and smirks. "Have fun breaking your back."

Steve smiles back. It's small, but worth it.

Sam falls asleep doing his best not to think about the fact that there is an assassin wall-to-wall with him.

 

Things get weirdly normal after that. Steve sleeps on the couch, complains about his back, and keeps giving Bucky hopeful looks. He goes back to Fury and the promise of a new, better SHIELD without Hydra. Sam goes back to work. He also keeps making up excuses to why his siblings can't visit because there was  _no way_ he was letting his nieces and nephews anywhere near a formerly brainwashed Hydra operative. Not that Bucky really did much. He spent most of his days watching TV and going on runs. He'd have long, quiet conversations with Steve sometimes, but those usually ended with both of them looking pretty unhappy. Steve confided in Sam that Fury wanted to recruit the Winter Soldier, but Bucky didn't want to go back to action. Not yet. And no one could really blame him. That did, however, mean that Steve was sometimes sent out on missions with only Black Widow to watch his back. Not that there was anything  _only_ about Natasha, but it did leave Sam slightly concerned.

They never brought up their night together again. Sam didn't know how, and the more time went by the harder it got. Especially with Bucky there every second of every day. He  _did_ know, however, that Bucky and Steve weren't sleeping together. One of the perks (or curses) with his place was that the walls were paper thin. If they were getting it on, they were either doing somewhere else or quieter than mice. Sam was pretty sure it was neither. He felt strangely glad at that.

One day when Steve's on a mission he found Bucky sitting alone on the couch, staring at the TV without really watching. Sam sat down next to him. "You okay?" he asked, trying to sound casual.

Bucky shrugged.

"Beard's getting a bit long."

Bucky rubbed his chin self-consciously, but didn't say anything.

Sam sighed. He might as well just go for it. "You remember everything, huh?"

That got Bucky to go painfully rigid. Sam made a point not to look at him, allowing him his time to decide how he wanted to respond.

In the end, Bucky said, "Yeah."

"Both the good and the bad?" he asked, even though he knew the answer.

"Most of it was pretty bad."

Sam nodded, understanding. The silence stretched out between them, and to his surprise, Bucky became the one to break it.

"He expects me to go back to who I was," he said. Then he went quiet again.

"Only, you've changed," Sam said carefully, testing the waters. When Bucky didn't react, he went on, "Your memories aren't just of Bucky Barnes, Steve Roger's best friend, but also of the Winter Soldier, top assassin for Hydra. It's shaped you, changed you, and is as much a part of you as Bucky was. Steve is having a hard time accepting the fact that your life went on after he last saw you, and that you're a new person now. Just like he's a new person after the things he experienced with the whole ice-timetravel thing, and aliens falling out of the sky. Only your change is more radical, because your experiences were more different. Am I getting warm here?"

Bucky was stock-still for a few moments. Then, painfully slowly, he nodded.

Sam patted his arm. "He just needs time, and so do you. I'm sure you guys will figure it out."

Bucky snapped his head to the side and stared down at where Sam touched him. Sam slowly withdrew his hand, and put his arms in the air to show he was non-threatening.

"Sorry about that, won't touch without permission again," he promised.

Bucky swallowed, still staring at Sam's hand. "No, it's okay."

Sam decided that would have to be end of the therapy session, and left.

The day after, Bucky came out of the shower, clean-shaved. Sam whistled when he saw him. "You clean up nice, man."

Bucky's lips twitched, as if he was almost about to smile. Sam counted that as a win.

"What are your plans today?" Sam asked, sticking his head into the fridge to grab breakfast.

"Nothing in particular. How about you?"

He straightened up again and shrugged. "Work, as always." He glanced at Bucky, who was shifting from one foot to another, and blurted, "Wanna come?" Bucky hesitated, so he went on, "It's a quiet day anyway, just got one session and then a bunch of paperwork. You don't have to stay all day, or go to the session if you don't want, but there are good restaurants and cafés close by. It might do you some good to walk around and just look."

Bucky remained silent. Sam shrugged, admitting defeat, and went to get dressed in work clothes. When he went to the door to leave, Bucky was already waiting. His shoulders were pulled to his ears and he kept fiddling with the hem of his shirt nervously, which Sam decided not to comment on. Instead he just smiled and lead the way.

Bucky sat in the back during the entire session and didn't offer up a word, but by the time it was over his shoulders had loosened up a bit.

"You're good at that," he said when he followed Sam to his office.

"I know I am," Sam said, and threw Bucky a wink. " _This_ , though, I suck at." He gestured at all the papers that clustered his desk. "This will take all day," he said mournfully. He settled behind his desk, and glanced up at Bucky. "You can go if you want. Walk around a bit, get to know the area."

Bucky nodded. "Where is there good coffee?"

"Pat's, just down the street to your right." He smiled. "Have fun."

Sam was deep in his papers when his door opened again, and a coffee cup landed in front of him. He looked up at Bucky, who smiled hesitantly. Sam was so caught by the fact that Bucky was actually smiling at him that he didn't know what to say.

Bucky sat down on the other chair, and pulled out his phone. When it seemed that he wasn't about to leave, Sam went back to his paperwork, and they remained in silence. It felt oddly comforting to have him there.

They went out together at lunchtime, and Bucky showed interest in an Indian restaurant. However, when they sat down, Bucky looked like a lost puppy.

"First time?" Sam suggested.

"I've always wanted to try it," Bucky confessed. "But never got a mission that involved it."

Sam felt so bad for him he ordered some extra dishes, just so that he could try everything. If he ordered a few spicy dishes just to watch Bucky turn red and cough up a fit, well, it did at least make them both laugh. And what a laugh Bucky had. It was full-bodied, his head thrown back and his hair curling around chis face. Sam was sad to leave the restaurant to return to work.

Bucky left Sam's office early, and when he came back home he realized why. Bucky had tried to cook for the two of them. Sadly, Bucky's cooking was lacking, at best. Sam tried to eat the chicken, which was so bland that he almost suspected Bucky had  _just_ killed it with his bare hands an hour ago, plucked it, and then boiled it quickly before presenting it on the plate. The potatoes were even worse. He briefly wondered if Bucky was trying to assassinate him.

"Did you add even a bit of salt?" Sam had to ask when he just couldn't stomach anymore.

Bucky looked confused. "A little, I think?"

"You _think_?"

Bucky shrugged. "Why, was it too much?"

Sam wanted to cry. It was his fault really, for allowing the household to live on mostly take-out for so long. He just hadn't felt for cooking, but now that he saw what Bucky considered 'cooking', he knew he needed to show him a good example of how it was actually done. "Next time, I cook."

Bucky actually smiled at that. "Okay."

There was a sound at the door, and his face immediately fell into what Sam liked to call "guard-dog mode", which was when he thought there might be an oncoming threat and everyone in the room needed to be protected. Sam couldn't help but feel a bit touched that Bucky felt he was worthy of protection, even though nothing more dangerous than the neighbor's cat had come through his door so far.

Steve made it into the living room, his shoulders slumped in exhaustion, but when he saw Bucky's clean-shaved face his lips pulled into that bright smile he'd give no one else. Sam exuded himself and left the room.

 

Sam was just about to go to sleep with he heard whispers in the living room. He tried to block it out, Steve and Bucky deserved to have private conversations. Eventually, they went silent, and a pair of footsteps went to the other bedroom. And then another pair of footsteps followed.

Sam shot up straight in the bed. Were they both going to what was now Bucky's room? Steve had remained adamant about taking the couch so far. Sam couldn't help but wonder what had changed. And why he hadn't just come to Sam.

Were they....?

Sam buried his head below his pillow, trying to force the thought out. They couldn't be. Steve wouldn't.

It wasn't that he didn't believe Steve might be into Bucky that way, and that he might be interested in fucking him. But Steve would tell Sam if that were to happen. At least because he was his friend and this was his damn house, and at most because it was the decent thing to do when you were fucking someone wall-to-wall to your ex.

Not that they were exes. They'd just hooked up once. But Steve must at least have the decency to acknowledge that it happened and tell Sam that although it was great, his heart lied elsewhere. Otherwise, he was pretty much an asshole.

The bedsprings squeaked on the other side of the wall, and Sam had to acknowledge that maybe Steve was an asshole after all. There were some more whispers, but the walls weren't quite thin enough for him to hear through them.

He rolled out of bed. _Am I really going to do this_?

He could just act like a grown ass adult, go back to sleep, and then have a long overdue talk with Steve about this in the morning. Maybe kick him out of the house, if he felt especially petty.

Instead, he decided to listen to his immature side, and tiptoe out of his room to the door of Bucky's. They'd left the door half-open, and Sam could easily see them lying in bed together, Steve's hand resting on Bucky's stomach the same way it had the night they'd gotten together. For some reason, _that_ was what made Sam feel white-hot rage burst through his body.

He could've walked by going to the bathroom and caught them by accident, and Steve knew that. The fact that he didn't care, didn't even consider that maybe Sam didn't want to see the guy he slept with just weeks ago hooking up with another guy, meant that Steve really was an asshole.

Sam wanted to burst into the room and give him a good shout-down. Cuss him out, and kick him to the curb. After everything Sam's done, after all the shit he'd gone through. Even if you forgot about them having sex, even if he just thought about their friendship: Didn't he deserve to know that his two houseguests were using  _his_ guest room to do the nasty? Or at least deserve to know that he hadn't spent months of his life finding his best friend's other best friend and almost-brother (as most history books liked to describe their relationship), but lover? It wouldn't have made him want to help any less, although it would've made his crush crumble much sooner.

While Sam was seething inside, Steve and Bucky were still whispering to each other.

"We've helped each other out before," Steve said, and right there Sam's lovers theory was confirmed. Great. Just great. "Remember?"

"I remember."

Steve's hand moved lower, and Bucky pushed his hips into it. Sam would've looked away if he hadn't caught the hesitation on Bucky's face.

"What about Sam?" he asked quietly.

Steve frowned and his hand paused in its movement. "What _about_ Sam?"

Pain overtook him. He could literally feel his own heart get torn to pieces. But  _no_. He wasn't going to break down and cry. He was angry, damn it. Furious.

"Aren't you guys...?" Bucky trailed off, as if unsure what to say. And _oh_ , this was interesting. Did Bucky think Steve and Sam were together? Maybe Sam wasn't the only one being kept in the dark.

"We've done this too," Steve confirmed. He pushed his hand down Bucky's pants, and Bucky closed his eyes, panting. "But it didn't mean anything." There came the pain again.

Steve moved closer to Bucky, but they didn't kiss on the lips. Instead, Steve trailed his mouth down Bucky's neck, and Bucky let out a breathy moan.

This was definitely the time to look away. Sam turned around, trying to block out the moans coming from the room. He didn't have it in him to burst in there and break them apart, although God knew he wanted to. He'd just talk with Steve about it in the morning. Explain why he was mad, and tell him he needed time. If Steve was apologetic enough, he might consider someday taking him back as a friend, but he was going to need a long break from that pretty face of his for a while.

He forced his legs to take him away from the sound of the squeaking bed.

"Sam taught me something," Steve whispered between open-mouthed kisses, and Sam froze.

_The fuck?_

Bucky made a noise that was either encouraging, or a reaction to a very good downstroke from Steve's hand, and Sam really didn't want to know. Either way, Steve went on, "You and me have never done it before," he explained. "But it was good. We can try it. If you like." Bucky made a confirming noise (or he just got another good stroke).

That made Sam pause. He tried to remember the details of his night with Steve. He'd seemed almost a bit confused at times, but Sam hadn't thought much about it. Now he wondered, what if Steve had never made it to penetrative sex with men before? He'd obviously been into it, so Sam hadn't exactly taken advantage, but he still wished he'd stopped and asked about it.

He heard a wet smack, and he knew he shouldn't look, he really shouldn't, but apparently he hated himself because he did turn around and look. Steve's finger were glistering with spit, and he reached behind himself, ready to push one finger into his hole. Bucky stared at him wide-eyed, reminding him way to much of Steve on their night together.

Sam immediately realized what was going on. Stupid-ass Steve was going to try this, probably his first time getting it up the ass, with only spit. He was not going to prep himself good enough. And super-soldier or not, that was going to hurt like hell.

Jesus F Chris.

He shouldn't care. Steve was a big boy, he could make his own dumb decisions. Besides, he was literally in the middle of breaking Sam's heart, Sam was allowed not to feel too much pity for him.

Unfortunately, he'd been raised to be a good person. That's why he totally blamed his mother when he went to his own room, got his bottle of lube, and rushed back and threw it on the two men much harder than was necessary.

Steve's face snapped to him, filled with surprise, and really, Sam thought these people could hear better than normal people. How did he not hear Sam walking around?

"Sam, what...?" he stumbled over his words, his face going beet red, and Sam hoped he felt _very_ ashamed right now.

"You need that." Sam swallowed, doing his best to keep his voice steady. "Otherwise it'll hurt."

Steve stared at him for a few silent moments, and Sam suddenly felt like he was the naked one. After a while, Steve nodded, and reached for the bottle.

"I'll let you lovers get back to it," Sam said stiffly, his eyes burning, and turned to leave.

"We're not lovers," Bucky said suddenly, and Sam faced them again. This time he was the one that'd been caught of guard. Bucky met his eyes. "We're just getting off. We're not together."

He shouldn't say what he's thinking about saying. He really, really shouldn't. But he glanced at Steve, whose face wasn't really giving him much right now, and he wanted to hurt him the same way he was hurting Sam. And if their night together meant nothing to Steve, why should it mean anything to Sam? And if Steve could hook up with someone basically right in front of Sam, why couldn't he do the same?

But he really, really shouldn't say, "I can show you how it's done," and crawl into bed between them.

Steve and Bucky had broken apart, and it wasn't hard to crawl on top of Bucky until their faces were so close he could feel Bucky's hot breath against his lips. Their eyes met, and Bucky's wide-eyed stare made him realize that  _he_ hadn't agreed to their bodies being this close together right now.

"I'm sorry," he said immediately, getting ready to get off him, out of the room, out of the house, down to the water where he could just drown himself in shame. "I didn't mean..."

Bucky silenced him with a kiss. Sam was caught off guard, which allowed Bucky to plant a few on him before he could react.

To his surprise, his body's reaction to the kiss was to completely melt into it. He felt Bucky's tongue against the seam of his lips, and opened his mouth to allow entrance. The kiss deepened, and Sam let out a small moan. Bucky was definitely a better kisser than Steve.

He grinded his hips down, and could feel Bucky's hard cock slide against his through the fabric. Bucky let out an appreciative moan. Sam bit lis lower lip and smiled when it got him to buck his hips up involuntarily. They began grinding their hips together, creating wonderful friction. His entire world narrowed down to the feeling of Bucky's body underneath him. He ran his hands over Bucky's muscular chest, and settled in the cradle between his big thighs. The through that Bucky could probably keep him trapped forever between his legs by sheer strength shouldn't turn him on as much as it did.

Eventually their lungs begged for air, and they had to break the kiss, breathing heavily. Bucky pupils were blown wide with lust, and Sam suspected his own were just the same. He kissed down Bucky's chest, mouthing over each scar he'd felt with his fingers, and made it down to his hard cock. It wasn't as big as Steve's, but still beautifully long and thick. He licked a long line from the base to the tip, and Bucky let out a loud curse. He didn't let Sam stay down there long though, but grabbed his shoulders and hauled him up so they could share another deep kiss. He shoved at Sam's boxers, obviously wanting to get them off, and made an annoyed sound when they caught by his knees.

Sam laughed against his lips, went to the side to kick his boxers off, and rolled right into Steve's rigid body.

It felt like a bucket of cold water was thrown over him. He'd forgotten about Steve, who'd huddled together at the very edge of the bed. Sam suddenly felt for being nasty, and snarled, "Do you mind?" without looking him in the face.

Steve rolled off the bed, leaving room for Sam to lie on his back and get his boxers off. Then he climbed on top of Bucky again, grabbing the lube on his way. Once he was up though, he became unsure. What was he _doing_?

Bucky grabbed his cock, stroking it carefully, and rational thought left his brain. He closed his eyes and bucked into his hand desperately. It'd been too long since he'd gotten off, and he felt like he would burst if he didn't get it now.

Bucky's free hand, the metal one, grabbed his ass cheek and massaged it carefully. "Can I?"

Sam nodded quickly. It was what he had promised after all, and he found that he wasn't very opposed to the idea of getting Bucky inside of him. He got the lube on his fingers and reached behind him to get to his hole.

He got a strange feeling of de ja vu as he pressed his first finger in. But Bucky wasn't Steve. He didn't lie motionless and unhelpful for one, but kept stroking his cock steadily and moved his other hand up and down his thigh.

"You'll look so good on my cock," he breathed, and Sam stuttered in his movement in his surprise. Bucky smirked at him, and it looked so much like the old war propaganda pictures that Sam almost didn't recognize him as the man who'd lived under his roof for the last couple of weeks. "I bet you'll love to feel me inside of you. Filling you up.

Sam let out an involuntary moan at his words, and shoved another finger in. Bucky's hand moved to grab his ass cheek again, pulling it to the side to make room as Sam got more fingers in.

"You're so beautiful Sam," he said reverently, and Sam loved that. Loved hearing his name roll off his tongue.

He grabbed Bucky's cock, and positioned himself above it. It didn't stretch too much as he slid down, and Bucky didn't move, allowing him to take his time to adjust. He breathed through the stretch, and moved back and forth a bit, getting accustomed. Once he was completely comfortable, he pulled up and then sunk down again.

Once again, the feeling of de ja vu returned.

Until Bucky grabbed him by the hips and sat up. It threw Sam off balance for a second, but Bucky's strong arms kept him positioned on his cock, and rearranged him until he was basically sitting on Bucky's lap. Bucky surged forward and kissed him, while shoving his hips off the bed. Sam cursed loudly when he hit hard against his prostate, unable to continue the kiss. They simply breathed into each others mouths as Bucky fucked into him, their chests so close together that Sam could feel it rise and fall with every breath. Bucky wrapped his arms around his back, surrounding him with warmth, and Sam leaned into it.

Sam decided to put in some work again, and tried to match Bucky's movement. After a few miscalculations, they managed to find a rhythm that drove them both crazy. The slick slide of Bucky's cock inside of him made him see stars, and he threw his head back in ecstasy.

"So beautiful," Bucky panted against his throat, leaving sloppy, open mouthed kisses over his skin. "Can I-" His words stuttered as Sam pushed down on him once again. He grabbed Sam's ass with both hands, a finger trailing down to where they were connected. "Sam, please, can I? In you?" he keened desperately.

Sam was just about to tell him he could do whatever the fuck he wanted, Sam was past caring, when he realized what Bucky meant. Sam'd forgotten to bring condom. Bucky was asking if it was okay for him to cum inside of Sam anyway.

Sam stilled in his movement, and Bucky made a animalistic noise of protest. He didn't push though, just glanced up on Sam with confused and lust-fogged eyes. Sam pushed his long hair away from his sweat-soaked face, and cupped his cheek. Some of the fog left Bucky's eyes, and his gaze turned more tender.

"Are you clean?" Sam asked, voice raspy. He didn't want to care. Just wanted to keep fucking until they both came. But he'd known guys with HIV, and he was not eager to join them.

Bucky nodded, leaning in to kiss his cheek. He licked a stripe up Sam's chin, probably chasing a drop of sweat, and whispered into his ear, "Tested the moment I got the chance. You?"

"Clean as a whistle," Sam said happily, and  _finally_ allowed himself to grind his hips down again.

They quickly picked up the pace back up, Bucky fucking into him desperately. Their lips connected, stealing the breath out of each other.

"Can I?" Bucky asked again, against his lips.

"Whatever you want," Sam promised. "Just don't stop." He thought he might just die if he did.

Bucky's grip on his hips tightened until it was just borderline painful, and he quickly flipped them over until Sam was underneath him, without ever pulling out of Sam. He snapped his hips forward so hard it rocked the bed into the wall, and all Sam could do was grab onto his shoulders and hang on for the ride. Bucky threw his head back and let out a long string of Russian when he came deep inside of him. Sam could feel the cum filling him, and he immediately tightened his legs around Bucky and came all over both of their chests. Bucky kept true to his promise, and didn't stop fucking him until Sam protested because of the over sensitivity.

Bucky pulled out slowly and collapsed beside him, breathing harshly. The cum that had just seconds ago made Sam feel full and turned on, now made him feel gross. He made a face as he felt it trickle out.

"Need a shower," he mumbled, but when he tried to make his legs move they refused to cooperate.

Bucky climbed out of bed, and Sam felt strangely bereft. Abandoned. Lonely. Stupid.

He was just about to force his body to roll him out of bed, when Bucky returned with a wet washcloth. He wiped Sam down with gentle hands, and Sam lied back and allowed him to do it.

"I should get back to my room," he said once it was done.

Bucky climbed into bed and pulled the covers over the two of them. "Stay. Steve can survive another night on the couch."

Sam figured he should somehow feel bad about Steve, but he couldn't put a finger on why. In the end, he just shook the feeling off, and went to sleep, Bucky's warm body keeping him company.

*

When he woke up he felt even grosser than the night before, and with a groan he dragged himself out of bed and walked to the shower. His muscles ached pleasantly underneath the warm spray, the way they do after a good night of fucking, and he smiled to himself.

On his way out of the bathroom, with only a towel around his hips, he almost crashed into Steve. Steve blushed deeply red when he saw him.

"Sorry," he muttered.

"About what?" Sam responded harshly.

Steve stared down on his feet, obviously at odds on how to respond.

Sam sighed. "Whatever, the shower is yours." He shouldered past Steve.

"Are Bucky and you...?" Steve asked his back.

Sam didn't know what he and Bucky were, what last night meant, but he wasn't going to get his hopes up about anything again. Last night with Bucky might just have been the same as the night with Steve had apparently been: sex and nothing else. He wasn't going to say that to Steve though. "That's between him and me."  _It's none of your business_ went unspoken. He felt a twisted satisfaction at Steve's hurt face.

Steve nodded, shoulders slumped, and went into the bathroom. Sam almost felt bad for him. Steve had been ready to sleep with his former lover, or whatever it was they'd been, last night, after years of not seeing him, thinking he was dead. It must've meant something to Steve, even if Bucky had seemed unaffected. Instead, Bucky and Sam had quite literally kicked him out of bed.

Then again, Steve had also broken Sam's heart.

Sam concluded that he wouldn't kick Steve out of the apartment right this morning, like he'd planned, but allow him to try to find a place of his own first. That at least made him feel better about himself.

He was just about to enter his own bedroom when Bucky caught him. He grinned, his face more open and happy than Sam had ever seen it.

"I had a  _phenomenal_ time last night," Bucky said, crowding Sam against the wall.

"Yeah?" Sam responded, suddenly breathless. His body was tired from being fucked senseless, yet his cock still managed to stir at the proximity of Bucky's toned body.

Bucky caught sight of Sam's towel rising, and grinned smugly. "The best." He leaned in closer, bracketing Sam's body, and it really should not feel this hot to be cornered by a former assassin. Bucky kissed him, softly at first, and then deeper when he saw that Sam was into it. Sam tangled his fingers in Bucky's hair, for once glad that it was so long, and pressed their bodies together. He felt Bucky grow hard against his thigh, and smiled into the kiss.

Bucky pulled back, grabbed his shoulder, and promptly turned him around so Sam was shoved face-first into the wall. Sam braced his forearms against the wall.

"Here, really?" he teased, but he didn't try to move away. In fact, he shoved his ass out, ready to feel a lube-soaked finger enter him.

Instead, he felt Bucky's hands grab his asscheeks and pull them apart, and his hot breath against his hole.

Wait, was he...?

Bucky licked a long stripe over his hole, and Sam's legs almost gave out beneath him. He scrambled for purchase, but there was nothing to grab onto on the wall.

Apparently he was.

Bucky kept licking his hole, his tongue sinfully talented. Sam sobbed against the wall, losing his mind piece by piece every time he felt Bucky's tongue. Bucky pressed his tongue into his hole, and Sam punched his fist into the wall, keening loudly.

"Jesus Chirst, Bucky. How did you get so good at that?" he moaned.

He felt Bucky smile against his skin, before he licked all the way down to his balls. Sam babbled nonsense, his brain now completely out of commission, and he barely registered the approaching steps until Steve let out a loud curse.

Bucky froze with his tongue deep inside of Sam, and Sam snapped his head to the side. Steve stood there with a towel around his hips, staring at them with wide eyes. He swallowed, turned around, and walked into the guest bedroom. Bucky burst into laughter, sending hot puffs of air onto Sam's sensitive hole. He stood up, mouthing  over Sam's neck, but Sam didn't lean into it.

He wanted to ask if Bucky had done that on purpose. If he'd wanted Steve to catch them, in order to... Sam didn't know. Make him jealous? Make him uncomfortable? Were the two of them playing some kind of sick game that Sam wasn't aware of?

But then Bucky pressed a finger inside of him, and Sam really couldn't care less. If they had some old rivalry that lead to Sam getting eaten out like  _that_ every morning, he was okay with it.

Bucky turned him around again so they were face to face, and grabbed Sam's thighs. He easily lifted Sam off the ground, and heat flared through Sam's body at the display of strength. He'd never been fucked against a wall before. Bucky slowly sank Sam down onto his cock, and Sam dug his fingernails into Bucky's shoulders, breathing harshly.

This time went faster, Bucky kissing him through his orgasm, before coming inside of Sam once again.

Sam groaned when he was put back down and felt the cum trickle down his thigh. "I _just_ took a shower."

Bucky smiled smugly. "I didn't take one yet, wanna join mine?"

Sam shoved at his shoulder so that he would no longer be boxed in against the wall. "Fine," he muttered, pretending to be annoyed. "But no touching!"

"Cross my heart," Bucky promised with a smile, and Sam couldn't help but smile back.

After their shower, which remained pretty PG, Bucky changed and waited for him at the door.

"Coming with me again today?" Sam asked.

Bucky suddenly looked as nervous as he was yesterday, all the bravado leaving him. "If that's okay?" he asked shyly.

Sam grinned and patted his shoulders. "Of course it is. But as punishment for making me miss my morning jog, you're going to have to help me with filing today."

Bucky didn't protest, just grinned back brightly.

"Also, do  _not_ make me dinner."

*

Bucky and Sam ended up having dinner out, and by the time they made it back, Steve had already locked himself into the guest bedroom.

"He can have it," Bucky said, and went into Sam's room.

"We are _not_ having sex again," Sam warned as he undressed. He collapsed into bed, tired from work and a particularly emotional session. "Three people asked me why I was walking funny today. My body just can't take another one." Which was sad, really. He liked having sex with Bucky.

Bucky crawled into bed next to him, and settled with his head on Sam's chest. "Okay," he concluded. Sam stilled, waiting for Bucky to try something anyway, but he didn't. Which posed the question; why was he in bed with Sam?

Then he remembered that Steve had taken Bucky's room for the night, and the couch was awful, and he sighed. He carded his fingers through Bucky's hair, and the man basically purred.

 _Interesting_ , he thought with a smile.

He fell asleep with Bucky breathing onto his neck, and found he didn't particularly mind that much.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The part where some actual talking happens.
> 
> Sorry this took so long, and that I added more chapters to this story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I loved all your comments on both chapters! Thank you :)  
> I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Sam wakes up to a pair of eyes staring down at him. Before he's even had the chance to blink awake he reached for his gun, only for his arm to be caught in an iron grip and a body to press him down on the bed. He braces against the bed and flips them around, pressing his forearm down on Bucky's throat. Bucky doesn't try to fight back, and Sam's mind finally gets a chance to catch up with his body.

"Shit," he mutters and scrambles back.

Bucky sits up, rubbing his throat. "Sorry, shouldn't have grabbed you. Was just afraid that you were planning to shoot me."

Sam's heart calms and he collapses back down on the bed, peering up at him. "I've never taken a shot before thinking it over at least three times. Reaching for the gun is just instinct."

Bucky nods, understanding, and then gives a sly smile. "Good morning." He leans down for a kiss, and Sam smiles against his lips.

When he pulls back Sam stretched over the bed, shaking the sleep out of his body. "Morning. What are your plans today?"

Bucky hesitates. "Can't I come with you today too?"

"It's the weekend, I don't have work." Which is why he had been hoping to sleep in, but he wasn't going to say that to Bucky and possibly hurt his feelings.

Bucky shrugged, looking away. "I think that's for the better. I need some time to talk to Steve."

Sam groans and flips over onto his stomach. He buries his head underneath the pillow. "How about we don't talk about Steve in bed." Otherwise he'd get some very bad memories of Bucky and Steve and  _nope_.

Bucky crawls closer. He gives Sam butterfly kisses over his neck and shoulders until he loosens up again. Then he settles on his side, so when Sam peeks up from below the pillow their eyes meet. "I've been thinking about what you said, yesterday, on your session." When Sam didn't react, unsure what exactly he was referring to (he'd said a lot of things on the session yesterday), Bucky explained, "About boundaries."

Sam turned over on his back again and stared up at the ceiling. Yesterday a soldier had asked what to do when loved ones kept hugging him and kissing him without asking, and how it made him uncomfortable. "You want to set up boundaries with Steve." It was a statement more than a question, but Bucky nodded anyway.

"He wants up to go back to where we were, to have the same relationship we used to have." Bucky's breath tingles Sam's neck when he speaks. "But we can't. Not that I don't want us to be close friends again, of course I do, I love him, but it can't be the same." Sam nodded in understanding. "We can't give each other occasional hand jobs like we used to." Sam choked on nothing, and Bucky laughed. "Sorry, but it was a pretty big elephant in the room."

Sam shoved his shoulder. "I know, but I was fine with dancing around it for a while." He tilted his head so he could see Bucky's face. "Good to know though, because I don't like being in the middle of some lovers' drama."

Bucky cupped his cheek tenderly, and Sam leaned into the touch. "Told you already, we aren't, and have never been, lovers. We'd just help each other out sometimes." He pecked him on the lips. "Besides, I prefer what we have."

Sam couldn't help but give a self-satisfied grin at that. "Yeah?" He gave Bucky a peck back. "Prefer fucking me against walls while Steve can walk around at any time?" That got Bucky to look away, and Sam snorted. "Sorry, but I thought we were addressing the elephants in the room."

"That was one elephant _I_ was comfortable dancing around," he muttered.

"What was that about? Trying to make him uncomfortable? Make him jealous?" Sam wasn't annoyed as much as amused, but he wanted to understand what he was getting himself into. "Trying to stake your claim?" Some red made it over Bucky's cheeks, and Sam realized he'd hit the right button. "You were trying to make it clear that I'm with you now?"

"Maybe," Bucky almost whispered.

Now _that_ got him annoyed. "Show him that I, what, _belong_ to you?"

Bucky immediately went rigid and slightly panicked. "Not like that. I just..." He sighed, closing his eyes. "Steve wouldn't go after the person his friend is with, he's not that kind of jerk." Sam wanted to say that he wasn't so sure. Not anymore. But he didn't want to start putting wedges in their relationship. _He_ wasn't that kind of jerk.

"So you're making sure he doesn't hit on me? "

Bucky shrugged, still not meeting his eyes. "If Captain America came knocking, who would say no?"

"You did," Sam reminded him.

"Yeah, but that was different. Steve and I have a complicated relationship, with weird history. Besides," he leaned closer, their noses almost touching, " _you_ were making a better offer. I was glad to pick you. But no one picks this," he waved over his body, his scarred chest, his metal arm, his damaged mind, "over Captain America."

Sam pushed some hair out of his eyes, searching his face. Bucky was smiling, but it was brittle, unsure. He truly meant what he was saying. "I would." Sam moved his hand down Bucky's neck, to his shoulder, to where his metal arm connected. He carefully traced the scarring there, and Bucky, if possible, went even more rigid. He didn't protest though, and Sam kept going. He hadn't had a chance to do this before, to watch Bucky in the daylight and map out how his body looked like. "I will never go back to Steve." And it was the truth. It didn't even have anything to do with Bucky, really. After what Steve did, he was unable to look at him the same again. The crush he'd had was dead and buried by now.

Bucky's body relaxed under his touch, and he smiled, obviously relieved. "Neither will I," he promised.

Sam mirrored his smile, and kissed his cheek. "Good we're on the same page then," he whispered into his ear.

Bucky huffed a laugh. "Also, you have to admit, it's pretty funny to see his face when he sees us together."

Sam laughed. "He does get unusually red," he agreed, kissing his way back to Bucky's lips. But Bucky turned away.

"Seriously though, Sam." He pushed Sam back so he could meet his eyes. "I haven't been in a position where I can sleep with someone without rush or fear involved in a long time."

Sam carded his fingers through his hair, and Bucky pushed into the touch. "You're safe here."

"I know. Otherwise I wouldn't have gotten hard to begin with the other day." He cupped Sam's cheek. "I didn't realize it until I saw you walk into the room, but you're the reason I feel safe, and that I want to do this." He smirked. "You kind of gave me my sex drive back."

Sam laughed. "I'm happy to help."

"I mean it Sam," Bucky said, voice grave, and Sam stopped laughing. "I like being with you." His words were more loaded than Sam had expected, and he didn't know how he was supposed to react.

He decided the truth would probably be the best, and said, "I like being with you too." He didn't know if he and Bucky meant it the same way, didn't even know what different way Bucky _could_ mean it as, but it got Bucky to relax and smile happily, so he let it stop at that.

"Of course you do," Bucky said, self-satisfied.

Sam huffed. "Now lay still." He got up so he was hovering over Bucky, and kept him still with hands on his shoulders. He knew, of course, that if Bucky didn't want to be held down he could easily push Sam off. It made him realize how much Bucky really did trust him.

Sam trailed his hands down Bucky's chest, tracing every scar before kissing it lightly. Once he'd kissed them all, he left a trail of open-mouted kisses over his chest, until he reached a nipple. He took it between his lips, sucking experimentally, and Bucky gasped. His fingers grabbed onto his shoulders, keeping him in place, and he flicked his tongue over Bucky's nipple until it went hard. He could feel Bucky going hard against his thigh, but he ignored his erection in favor of exploring the rest of his body. He licked over Bucky's other nipple, making it hard as well, before kissing up to his left shoulder. There he left butterfly kisses over the long scar where the arm was attached, before kissing down the hard, unforgiving metal. Bucky's breathing turned labored, and he bucked his hips up into the air, looking for friction that he wasn't getting.

"Can you feel it when I do this?" Sam asked, and licked over his palm, before taking a metal finger into his mouth. He sucked on it carefully. It didn't yield to his tongue the way skin would, and didn't taste right, but he didn't care.

Bucky took a few deep breaths, as if to center himself, and said, "Yes. I can feel pressure the same way normal skin does. But not pain or temperature, because that would defeat its purpose of acting as a superior arm."

Sam pulled off his fingers with a wet  _pop_ , leaving a trail of spit behind. Bucky stared at his lips, mesmerized. Sam licked them carefully, and his pupils went wide. With a smirk, he kissed down Bucky's chest again, until he reached his tented boxers. He licked over the fabric, making Bucky say something in Russian that sounded like a curse. He licked until the fabric went damp, and then pulled it away to free Bucky's leaking cock. He'd wanted to take him in his mouth the first time they got together, but they'd been so busy getting Bucky's cock into his ass that there hadn't been enough time. Now, he took his sweet time sucking BUcky's tip into his mouth, licking over the slit, while he lazily ran his hand up and down the base. Bucky whined deep in his throat, and his thighs shook with the effort it took him to keep still. Sam sucked him in deeper and deeper, until he was almost at the base, when Bucky began pushing him away.

"Wait," he panted, and Sam immediately pulled off.

"What did I do?" he asked, scrambling back. "Did I use teeth?"

Bucky took some deep breath, probably to steady himself, and ran his hand down his face. "No, I just don't want you to feel like you have to do _that_." He said the last word with some vehemence that quite frankly confused Sam.

He frowned and crawled up so that they were face-to-face. " _Have to_?" he repeated, confused. "I like doing that."

Now Bucky was the one that was confused. "You like it? But everyone always said..." he trailed off, blushing slightly.

"Everyone always said what?" Sam pushed.

"You know, that the guy on his knees was..." He shrugged, avoiding Sam's eyes.

"What?" he pressed. "Weak? Girly? Some homophobic slur that I won't say?"

Bucky shrugged again. "All of the above."

"And what did they say about the guy who took it up his ass?" he snarled.

"I don't really know anyone who did take it up the ass at the time."

Sam rolled his eyes. "So what, only hand jobs were fine back in the day?"

"Yeah, because that wasn't really sex. It was just friends helping each other out."

He sounded so serious about his words that Sam couldn't help but burst out laughing. "Oh my god, you guys were giving each other bro-jobs." He fell to his side, still laughing. "You were no-homoing it even back in the 1940's."

"I don't get what's so funny about that," Bucky grumbled, which only got Sam to laugh harder. "And what we did in the past is irrelevant. What I meant was, when two people rub each other off, or one fucks the other, they both get something out of it. But what does the person on his knees get out of sucking his partner's cock? It's only the partner who enjoys it, and I don't want you to feel like you have to do something like  _that_ only for my pleasure."

Sam finally stopped laughing, and turned his head to the side to watch Bucky's profile. "If you ever gave a blow job, you might get what's so nice about it." When Bucky didn't respond, he got up on his elbow and trailed his hand down Bucky's chest. "It's pleasurable for me to give my partner pleasure. Sucking someone's cock isn't shameful or weird, it's a normal sexual act, and I enjoy both preforming and receiving it."

"Giving your partner pleasure gives you pleasure?" Bucky repeated slowly. "Never thought of it that way." A look of determination crossed his face, and he surged up to kiss Sam. Sam smiled into the kiss as Bucky carefully pressed at his shoulders until he was lying back. Bucky slowly kissed down his chest, and grabbed him around the cock.

"Wait," Sam mumbled, even though it killed him to do so. "Maybe I should show it how it's done first." He'd gotten blow jobs by bj-virgins before and it hadn't always ended well. He figured that he could at least teach Bucky to keep his teeth to himself.

He got Bucky on his back again, and took his cock back into his mouth. Bucky moaned loudly, but didn't move. Sam sucked him off slowly, using every trick he knew. He licked at the slit, sucked hard at the head, and then took him down so deep he could feel him hit the back of his throat. He hummed carefully, and Bucky cursed and came down his throat. Sam kept sucking until he was completely spent and whined because of the over-sensitivity. He pulled back with a wet  _pop_. Bucky stared down at him open-mouthed, his eyes stuck at his swollen lips. Then his eyes went down to his hard cock, and he licked his own lips.

Sam's cock jumped in appreciation, and he lied down on his back again so that Bucky could get access. He prepared himself for some sloppy inexperience, and therefore came almost immediately when Bucky swallowed down his whole cock on one try and swallowed around him. Bucky used his metal hand to trail over Sam's balls, and down to his hole, where he pressed in lightly. After that, Sam was done for. He came with a loud moan, his hips bucking off the bed, and Bucky swallowed everything down.

While they laid side by side, both breathing heavily with sweat cooling on their skin,  Sam said, "Either you are the world's fastest learner, or you've done that before."

"I never said I hadn't done it before," Bucky pointed out and gave him a shit-eating grin. Sam threw the pillow at his face. "I've only ever done it in order to get it back. Never really enjoyed the act itself, until now." This time his smile was sweeter. "Until you. I love making you feel good."

Sam kissed him lightly. "Good, because I want that again." Bucky laughed.

*

Sam left after breakfast in order to give Bucky and Steve room to talk. He felt for protesting, because it was his place after all, but his sister had called and wanted to meet up and he was not bringing her over just yet.

Sarah met him at a café close by. She sat down in front of him, stirred her coffee mug, looked at him for a few moments, and then smirked. "Have you met someone new?" She leaned over the table and tapped a hickey on his neck. He knew Bucky had looked too smug before he left.

Out of everyone in Sam's family, Sarah was the only one he was never able to lie to. Mostly because he never felt like he wanted to lie to her; she never judged him and he never judged her. "I guess you could say that."

She smiled excitedly. "What's her name?"

"It's a him."

Her eyes widened. "Did you fuck Captain America?" Of course she'd come to that conclusion; she knew he and Steve had been spending time together ever since seeing him on TV taking down Hydra. Then she made a face. "Fuck and Captain America should not be used in a succession, it just feels wrong."

"I know the feeling."

"That doesn't answer my question."

"Yes, but that was some time ago. This," he pointed at the hickey, "is from Bucky Barnes."

"Bucky Barnes from the Howling Commandoes?"

"Yes."

She dropped her spoon into the coffee mug. "You slept with Captain America and then slept with his best friend?"

He winced; that made him sound bad. "I didn't do anything wrong."

"Did you have some weird three way?"

"No!" he hissed. "Steve and I just didn't end up well together. It's working better with Bucky." For now at least.

"I cannot believe this. You've slept with two out of ten Howling Commandoes." She laughed. "Are you going to keep going for the whole set?"

"They're all dead," he reminded her.

"So were Bucky and Steve," she pointed out. He couldn't argue wight hat one. "So how does this work?"

"It's all pretty new, but Steve is supposed to move out soon." He had yet to actually bring that up with Steve, but hopefully Bucky would.

"Wait, you all live together?"

"Kind of."

"And you went from fucking one of them to the other."

"The thing with Steve was a one-time thing a while ago. Bucky and I just started out. Okay?" he snapped, annoyed.

"No need to get pissy about it." She lifted her coffee cup to her lips, probably trying to hide a smile. "Did you at least wait until Steve was out of the house before moving on with his best friend?"

Why was she was making him sound like the bad guy? He stared down into his coffee, unwilling to meet her eyes, knowing that his next words wouldn't exactly help his case. "Steve was kind of in the room. In the bed."

She dropped her mug.

*

In the end Sam had had no choice other than to go through exactly what happened with Steve and Bucky, or he'd never hear the end of it from Sarah. Once she was satisfied that her brother was not in fact the bad guy in the story, she did kindly offer to come over and yell at Steve. The offer was tempting; it would probably get Steve out of his place faster, but in the end he had to decline. He did however accept going with her to pick up her children from soccer practice and spending some time with them.

Bucky and Steve had ordered Chinese when he got back. He expected things to get awkward, and was surprised to see that the atmosphere was rather relaxed. It was a rather silent dinner, but the air was friendly. Steve did look rather tense every time Sam and Bucky touched though, which only seemed to make Bucky want to do it more.

"I'm taking the guest room," Steve declared once they'd washed up and disappeared behind the door.

Sam was about to protest and bring up the moving-out thing, but moment Steve was out of sight Bucky grabbed Sam and pulled him into a deep kiss and Sam was only human. He let Bucky to lead him to his bedroom and press him down on the bed.

"You told him to take your room?" he panted as Bucky kissed down his neck.

"Mmmm," was all the response he got. Bucky bit down on the juncture between his neck and shoulder and Sam hissed. "Since we'll be in yours most of the time." He pushed his hand under Sam's shirt, mapping out his muscles and making Sam shiver. "That a problem?" The question sounded incredibly dirty when Bucky whispered it against his ear, and Sam had to stop himself from grinding his hips up against the warmth of Bucky's body.

"I was actually, ah," Bucky shoved his hand down Sam's pants and he trailed off.

Bucky tugged at his shirt, letting out a satisfied noise when Sam managed to struggle out of it. "Think you're ready to go again?" Bucky slipped his hand around Sam's hip and grabbed his ass, making his intention clear.

Sam nodded desperately, already reaching for the lube. The Steve thing wasn't that important anyway. They could talk about it later.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been forever. I don't even know if people are still following this story or not. If you are, thanks for sticking with me! I will finish it at some point, it's only one more chapter now!
> 
> Feel free to leave comments! :)

Sam never really did get around to telling Steve to move out. It was as if every time the subject was about to be brought up, something happened to distract him. That something was usually Bucky, but in his defence it wasn't as if Sam was resisting Bucky's advances. Things settled into something oddly normal. It was almost exactly like before the whole stopping-Bucky-and-Steve-from-fucking-by-fucking-Bucky-instead event. Steve went off on occasional missions, Sam went to work, Bucky went on runs. Only now, Bucky and Sam shared a bedroom while Steve stayed in the guest room, Bucky followed him to work at least once a week, and Bucky and Steve actually seemed satisfied after talking to each other. Their relationship almost seemed calmer somehow. Steve still sometimes sent Bucky sad glances, as if waiting for him to turn back into the man he used to be fore the Winter Soldier, but it seemed he'd mostly accepted the new version of him.

It was strange. So very, very strange. Yet, so very normal. Sam was just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Maybe that was why he wasn't trying as hard as he could to speak to Steve one-on-one. He was worried that if they did sit down, alone, and really talk through all that'd happened these past few months, the calm would be broken and everything would become messy. Well, messier than it already was. He couldn't tell what Steve was thinking. He was nice enough on the rare occasions when they did get alone, like when they were passing each other for the shower or on the way out, but other than that he never tried to get Sam alone either. It seemed he also wasn't looking forward to that one-on-one.

The oddest thing so far, Sam had to admit, was movie night. Whenever Steve was home, and Sam wasn't too tired from work, they'd put on a movie and watch it all together on the couch. It was both the most awkward and funniest thing Sam had ever experienced. Steve had been completely cut off pop culture since he got into the ice, which meant everything was new and exciting for him. But it was even more exciting for Bucky. Bucky had spent the past decades only occasionally hearing about movies or walking past posters, and now that he had his memories back he longed to see the movies he'd heard about. That meant they occasionally had to dig out very strange, European movies from the depths of the internet, with questionable subtitles at best. Thankfully, most of the American blockbusters had been famous overseas as well, so it didn't happen that often.

It was nice, sharing it with the two of them. Seeing old movies he'd seen a million times over through the lenses of people who'd never experienced it before. Steve's constant questions about what was going on, whether it was the time era or actors, made it feel like their friendship maybe could be saved. Maybe they could go back to the two men who ran past each other when they were out jogging.

They were halfway through the Phantom Menace when Sam felt Bucky's hand inching up his thigh. They'd already watched the original trilogy, so Sam couldn't really blame Bucky for losing interest considering the regression of quality. Still, Steve was sitting right there.

Then again, Steve had walked in on them so many times at this point that it shouldn't really bother him anymore. But it bothered Sam a bit. Steve walking in on them was always by accident; they'd never been caught deliberately. Well, at least Sam hadn't.

Bucky's hand continued up his thigh until his fingers stopped just next to the outline of his cock. The room was dark, and Steve was sitting on the armchair on Bucky's other side. He was engrossed with the movie and didn't seem to notice a thing.

Bucky's finger trailed around his cock, never directly touching it. Even that simple touch made Sam start to go hard. Bucky didn't even turn to look at him, and Sam did his best to keep his eyes on the film as well. Bucky cupped him through the pants, squeezing lightly. Sam's legs fell apart without him even thinking about it. Bucky took this as permission, and unbuttoned his jeans. He slowly opened zipper, allowing Sam's growing cock to push out. It was still covered by his underwear, and Bucky took his time stroking him lightly through the fabric.

Sam did his best to keep his breathing even, but it was difficult when one of the hottest guys he knew was giving him a hand job. He wanted to turn off the movie and pull Bucky into the bedroom, but that would take away the excitement somehow. Also, he didn't want to reveal what they were doing to Steve, who was still staring at the screen cluelessly.

Bucky stroked him until the fabric went damp with pre-come. Then he pushed his fingers down the elastic waistband, teasing the tip of his cock. Sam was going to go mad. His body ached to push into the touch, but he was afraid to even move. Bucky's fingers went down and down until he  _finally_ grabbed Sam's cock.

Sam couldn't help the low groan that escaped him. Steve's attention immediately snapped to them, and Sam scrambled to cover himself up.

"Damn it guys!" Steve exclaimed. "I used to sleep here!"

"It's my sofa," Sam couldn't help but point out.

"But we're watching a movie."

"A boring-ass movie," Bucky said, not sounding bothered at all at being caught. "But if you want to finish it, we promise to keep our hands to ourselves."

Steve sighed sadly. "No, the moment is ruined. I think I'll just go to bed." He stood up, dusting some popcorn off his shirt. "Please, these movie nights are the highlight of my week. Can you promise to keep your hands off each other for the next ones?"

Sam actually felt a bit bad. Despite all the shit Steve had done, he _did_ spend most of his days putting his life on the line to keep them all safe. He deserved to unwind with his friends. But then again, this was Sam's house.

"We'll try," Sam settled on in the end.

Steve accepted that answer. "Good night then. And please, if you do it on the couch, just wash it afterwards."

"We will!" Bucky called at his back.

Steve was barely out of the living room before Sam was dragged into Bucky's lap. He couldn't help but laugh, kissing Bucky soundly.

"You shouldn't have done that," Sam panted between kisses. "You know I don't like being caught."

"Sorry," Bucky mumbled against his lips, even though he didn't sound sorry at all. He tugged at Sam's pants. "Come on, off."

Sam managed to struggle out of his pants, and helped Bucky to pull off his. He'd been expecting Bucky to finish up the hand job, but he pulled out lube out of nowhere and had two fingers inside of Sam within a few moments. Sam clenched around his fingers, moaning loudly. He always liked it when Bucky prepped him.

"We've traumatised him enough for life," Sam went on, riding Bucky's fingers slowly. "Poor guy is going to need a shrink to help him through this."

Bucky laughed and pulled his fingers out. Sam tried not to whine at the loss. He got up on his knees, his thigh trembling with the effort, as Bucky took hold of his cock to line it up. "What do you think he's doing right now?" he breathed, teasing Sam's rim with the head of his cock. Sam was just about to push down when Bucky said, "Do you imagine he's thinking about us, getting all hot and bothered, touching himself." Bucky stopped teasing and made a move as if he was about to push inside of Sam, but Sam pushed off him.

"The fuck!" he shouted, scrambling away from Bucky. "Why the fuck would you say that?" His cock went soft within moments. He grabbed his underwear and pulled them back on.

"I was just joking," Bucky said, bewildered. He was still sitting with his legs parted, his cock sticking up into the air.

"I told you not to speak about Steve when we're together," Sam hissed. "He is not part of this thing between us."

"I know, I was just..."

"I don't care!" he snapped. "That was a messed up thing to say."

"I'm sorry."

"Do you want him to be turned on by it? Is that why you always try to get caught?"

"No, I told you, I..."

But Sam wasn't having it. He felt grossed out. What if Steve truly was fantasising about them? But that thought didn't bother him as much as the idea that the scenario had made Bucky laugh. Sam went to his bedroom and banged the door shut behind him. Bucky was bright enough not to try to follow him.

Sam paced his room over and over until he thought he'd go crazy. He didn't understand what had just happened. Why would Bucky even say that?

It could've gone a few minutes, or the whole night might've passed, when he heard footsteps outside. Steve had obviously noticed the shouting, and now he was talking to Bucky in a low voice in the living room. They went quiet after a while, and the footsteps returned to the guest room. Steve closed the door behind him. It seemed Bucky stayed sleeping on the couch.

When Sam woke up the next morning the couch was empty, and so was Steve's room. Sam wondered, faintly, if this was it. If they'd both left him. Despite everything that had happened, the thought made him painfully sad. Steve was still his friend, and he'd come to really care for Bucky.

He didn't go for a run that day, just sat down and made breakfast for himself. He ended up poking around in the cereal bowl without really eating anything. He called in sick from work. His boss could probably tell he wasn't actually sick, but she seemed to hear the sadness in his voice let him off the hook for this time.

It was almost lunchtime when the door opened and Bucky and Steve stepped through. Sam hadn't left the couch the whole day, and was still in his pyjamas shorts. He refused to feel self-conscious, though.

The moment he realised they were back his anger returned, the sadness long forgotten. "Where have you been?" he snarled.

"Fury called us in," Steve said. "He has a mission. Wants Bucky to come with."

Bucky stayed a step behind Steve, his hands buried deep in his pockets. He looked almost scared to get close to Sam. Sam would feel bad for him if he wasn't still feeling so grossed out.

"He wants you too."

"What?" Sam said.

"He's calling all the Avengers together," Steve explained. "And he wants the Falcon too. We need more air support, now that Thor isn't around."

"What for?"

"There's talk about an attack in London. Some right-wing extremists got their hands on alien tech, don't ask me how."

"When are we leaving?"

Steve seemed surprised. "You're coming? Don't you want to hear more first?"

"Are lives in danger?" Steve nodded. "What more do I need to know."

Steve smiled widely. "We don't know how serious the threat is yet, and when it will all go down, so we probably won't be leaving for another day. Just be prepared."

"Aye, aye captain."

Steve laughed, and it felt good. It felt familiar, safe. Sam almost forgot that he was angry with the two of them. Until Bucky stepped forward with a tentative smile.

"No," Sam said, pointing at Bucky, stopping him from moving any closer.

"I should probably..." Steve said some incoherent words, and disappeared into his room.

"It was a joke," Bucky said. "I thought it was funny."

"It wasn't funny."

"I know. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought Steve up."

"It's not just about that, Bucky," Sam said tiredly. "I mean, it's largely about that, but it's also about how you almost seem to want to get caught. You said you didn't want Steve anymore."

"I don't!"

"Then why do you enjoy the idea of him seeing us together?"

"I don't," he repeated. "Well, that's not true. I want everyone to see us together. I want people to know we're together, but you obviously don't."

Sam decided to ignore the accusation for now. "By fucking in front of them?"

"We live in the same house. He catches us by accident, I swear. Also, in my defence, you did literally jump me while Steve was in bed with us," he pointed out. "How was I supposed to know that you were so opposed to the idea of him seeing us together after that?"

Sam threw his hands up. "Fuck this." He was just about to leave when Bucky grabbed his shoulders and made him face him again.

"Sam, please, just hear me out," he pleaded. "I know Steve and I have a history, and I get what this looks like, I do. I was making a joke. It was a bad joke, I know. Horrible. But it was nothing else. I thought it would make you laugh."

"It obviously didn't." Sam wanted to pull away, but there was something about Bucky that made him stay. He looked scared. Genuinely frightened, the way you're only supposed to look when aliens are falling out of the sky. He grabbed Sam's face, his thumbs stroking Sam's cheeks.

"I'm sorry, please forgive me." The desperation in his voice made Sam's heart break. "I knew I'd mess up, but I didn't think it'd be over something so stupid."

"Bucky, no." Sam sighed and leaned his forehead to Bucky's. "Look, I'll admit that fucking you in front of Steve and then getting angry when it happens again sends a bit of mixed messages, but I thought I was clear before. I don't want to talk about him, think about him or see him when we're intimate. He's our friend, and we'll obviously be interacting with him on other occasions, but when we're having sex it should only be about us."

"I know. It was so dumb."

Sam nodded. "Just... give me a few moments, okay? I need to think this through."

Bucky looked like backing away was the last thing he wanted, but he did let go of Sam and take a few steps back. "I'm going for a run," he announced.

"Actually, I meant a bit longer than..." But Bucky was already out the door. Sam sighed again, rubbing his hand over his face. This was a mess. How did he get himself into this?

He sat down on the sofa again, but didn't turn the TV back on. After a while, Steve emerged and came to sit next to him.

"Bucky went for a run," Sam said.

Steve nodded. "I just wanted to say..." he hesitated. "I don't think about you and Bucky when I... You know. Not ever." His face had turned a dangerous shade of pink and Sam would've laughed if this whole thing wasn't so utterly _wrong_. "Just for the record."

"He told you?"

"I figured most of it out on my own. These walls are paper thin, and I have enhanced hearing. Bucky just filled in a few gaps."

Sam winced. "No wonder you accept so many overnight missions."

Steve snorted. "Tony got me these earplugs. I told him it was because of all the noises from the cars, but I think he's suspecting something. They work pretty well most of the time."

Sam had to laugh at that. He'd reached a point where Captain America had to go to Iron Man to get earplugs so he wouldn't have to hear Sam fucking Bucky Barnes. "My life is a mess."

"Your life seems rather decent to me. Nice home, nice family, nice friends."

This was probably the perfect time to bring up Steve leaving. Sam was truly about to do it this time around, but Steve went on.

"Great boyfriend." Steve smiled at him, something soft and private. "I never thought I'd say this, but you and Bucky really work together."

"We do?"

"You make him happy. Ever since you started spending more time with him, he's cleaned up his act, started going to therapy, gotten hobbies."

"He doesn't go to..." Actually, now that Sam thought about it, Bucky did go to therapy at least once a week. He always came on the days of the group concealing sessions, and lately he'd started to come on sessions that weren't led by Sam. It was probably a wise move; having your lover be your therapist is not a good idea.

"He's talking about what he went through when he was the Winter Soldier with both of us."

It was usually in the disguise of talking about a film he wanted to watch, or a song he'd once heard, but it was true.

"Now he's even considering getting back into the field, joining SHIELD. He wants to do good in the world, to make up for all the bad he's done."

"That's good for him."

"No, Sam, you don't get it. He  _told_ me that. Do you have any idea how long it took for me to just get him to acknowledge that bad things happened? Now he talks about it. He asks for my opinion. For your opinion." Steve swallowed. "I know he won't go back to the Bucky I knew, but I'm liking this new Bucky that I'm getting to know." He grabbed Sam's shoulder and squeezed tightly. "The same goes for you, you know. Ever since you and Bucky got together you seem to have loosened up. You've started cooking, even."

"I have to, the guy was going to kill us."

"All I'm saying is, you and Bucky are my closest friends. I want you two to be happy. I'm so glad you found each other." Steve's words rang true, but there was something almost sad underneath. "I'm glad you make each other happy."

Did Bucky make him happy? Because Steve was right; Bucky had changed drastically since they got together. But just because Sam was good for Bucky, that didn't mean Bucky was good for Sam.

Having Bucky in his life had brought him a certain joy. Physically, yes, it was great sex. But it was also interesting to talk to him about his work, and about the world as it is today. It was fun to watch movies together, to discuss pop culture and media. And Bucky even pushed him to experience new things, like new films or new recipes.

"It was a weird joke," Sam said.

"Super weird," Steve agreed. "But it's very much the Bucky I once knew. You're lucky, actually, he used to be much crasser. I once caught him with two girls in my bed, and he didn't even look sorry about it."

Sam laughed. He laughed and laughed, because despite it all being so strange, it felt so right.

"Don't break up with him over a bad joke," Steve said. "For him, this isn't even the worse one possible. He's trying to clean up his act for you."

"I'm not breaking up with anyone. He and I should have been clearer on rules earlier on."

"May I suggest a few? Like not fucking in the kitchen or the couch? And if you're doing it in the bathroom, please lock the door."

"I can promise two of those things."

"It's better than I'd hoped," he admitted.

Bucky returned around dinnertime covered in sweat. He must've really driven himself hard. "You better shower before coming to bed," Sam warned.

"So I'm allowed back into bed?" Bucky responded. Sam shrugged, and pushed a plate of pasta his way.

"We need rules," Sam said once they were both ready to sleep in the bedroom. "No..."

"Steve, I know," Bucky finished for him. "And I'll try harder to make sure he won't catch us."

"Locking the bathroom door, and no sex in the kitchen."

Bucky made a face. "I get the bathroom door, but why not the kitchen?"

"We eat there."

"Fine. But then no flirting with the receptionist at the VA."

"She's an old friend, it's not serious. Wait," Sam added thoughtfully, "is this why you always hold my hand when we enter the VA?"

"I get jealous, okay?"

"We have a way of communicating that we're used to, but I can tell her I'm with someone if that makes you feel better." She'd probably already figured it out, but it couldn't hurt to make it clear.

Sam was surprised at the bright smile that earned him. "Does that mean we can start telling people we're together?"

"What people? Everyone at the VA knows, considering the fact that I show up with you in tow all the time and the large hickeys you keep leaving me. I've already told my sister..."

"You have?" Bucky cut off, surprised.

"Well, I told her we've slept together. She was... impressed," he decided to settle on.

"Can I meet her?"

That was a good question. Could Sam's ex-assasin lover meet his sister? "I'll ask her if she has time to meet up for dinner sometime soon," he settled on. That way, it would be up to her. "I've met your friend." Slept with him too, but that didn't need mentioning.

"I guess you have." He frowned. "I need more friends."

"It couldn't hurt," Sam agreed.

"What else?"

"I won't cook for you forever. You need to learn too." It was meant to be a joke, and thankfully Bucky got that. He laughed, and Sam moved in to hug him.

Even though he'd done literally nothing all day, he felt exhausted.

"Let's go to sleep. We can talk more tomorrow," Sam said. "Unless you've got something urgent that you need cleared up?"

"I was just going to ask." He hesitated. Sam had his face pressed against his shoulder and couldn't see his face. "Do you mind the metal arm?"

"I think I've made it clear that I don't by now."

"I mean..." Sam felt his chest move as he took a deep breath. "Inside of you. Just in case, sometime, I forget myself and use the metal arm to prep you," he hurried to add.

"It's fine." It was actually more than fine. Bucky had teased his hole with his metal fingers a few times, but never pushed more than the tip inside. Sam was now curious to how that would feel. "I have nothing against it."

They settled down in bed, but the exhaustion Sam had felt had disappeared slightly. He felt hot in his clothes, and had to turn around so his back was to Bucky in order to stop his body from responding to his proximity. They were going to sleep. They'd just had a fight, this was not the time to have sex.

Bucky wrapped his arms around him from behind and nuzzled into his neck. That did not help.

Then again, he'd heard a lot of good about make-up sex.

He moved around a bit until his back was pressed flush against Bucky's front. Bucky's cock immediately took interest, and it wasn't long before Sam felt it hardening against his ass. Bucky seemed to catch on to what Sam was trying to do, and kissed the back of his neck, down over his shoulders.

"So you've completely forgiven me then?" Bucky whispered, sending puffs of air against his skin. His hand went down Sam's chest and cupped him through his pants.

Sam was still somehow full of frustration after the interruption yesterday. He'd been promised release, and then stopped halfway there, and now his body craved for it. He pressed back against Bucky more insistently, and Bucky let out a low groan. "Want you," Sam said.

Bucky helped him get his shirt off and continued kissing over his neck, down his back, until he reached the bottom of his pants. He pulled those off too, together with his underwear. Sam stayed on his side, and heard something rustle behind him. Bucky plastered himself against his back again, completely naked, and Sam twisted his head back so their lips could meet. The kiss was at a strange angle, and he barely managed to cover Bucky's entire mouth with his, but it still sent a heady rush through his body.

Bucky wrapped a lube-covered metal hand around Sam's cock, and he let out a low hiss, breaking the kiss. "Yes." Bucky bit his ear, encouraging him to fuck into the fist. Sam could come from just this, but he was still caught by what'd almost happened the night before. "Want you inside," he said breathlessly.

Bucky's hand disappeared from his cock, and he let out a pitiful whine. "Going to make it good for you," Bucky mumbled, and pulled at his leg. Sam lifted his leg slightly, allowing Bucky access. Bucky got some more lube, and pressed a finger inside. It felt harsher than usual, even though he'd been opened up not so long before. It took Sam a moment to realise it was because he was using his metal fingers.

"Fuck!" he shouted, almost coming right then.

Bucky stopped trying to push inside. "Is it okay?" he asked worriedly.

"Fuck yes, keep going," Sam practically begged. "Feels so good."

He felt Bucky smile against his shoulder blade. "You like that?" He pressed his whole finger inside, punching the air out of Sam. "You like having the feeling of the metal?"

"It's so harsh," he panted out. He didn't know how to explain it. It felt good to have something so strong and unyielding, something so powerful, knowing that it was being used for his pleasure alone. "I want more."

Bucky obliged, pushing another finger inside. It didn't take long before Sam was prepped enough, but he still let Bucky keep going until he was stretching him out with three fingers. His cock was leaking, but he was afraid that if he touched it he'd come too soon.

"Ready?" Bucky whispered, pulling his fingers out. Sam had been reduced to gibberish, and only managed to quick nod. Bucky leaned over and kissed him again, biting his lower lip. The sharp pain in his lips distracted him for a moment, and was probably the only thing that kept him from coming the moment Bucky pressed inside.

Bucky cursed loudly in Russian when he was fully sheathed. Bucky used Sam's leg for leverage and started fucked into him slowly. Sam let out breathless moans every time Bucky pulled out and then pushed back inside, hitting up against his prostate.

They usually went fast and harsh when they fucked, chasing release. Sam liked that. Scratch that, Sam _loved_ that. But this felt different. Bucky was taking his time, dragging in and out slowly, revelling at the friction. It felt more intimate somehow.

 _Making love_. It was such a stupid phrase. It made it seem like everything they'd done so far had been something filthy, which it hadn't, it'd all been wonderful and intimate. But this was something different. Not better, necessarily, but different, and he loved it. It made him feel warm.

Bucky's metal hand wrapped around his cock again, and he started jerking him off in tact with his movements. Sam reached behind and buried his fingers into Bucky's asscheeks, encouraging him to go deeper, faster. He'd thought he knew what it felt like to be completely filled by Bucky's cock, but he'd been mistaken.

Sam's hand went up and caught hold of Bucky's hair, and pulled him up so they could share another biting kiss. When he came, his scream was muffled by Bucky's lips. Bucky came only a few moments after, letting out a deep groan as he emptied himself inside of Sam.

When they pulled apart, breathing heavily, a strange thought came to Sam.  _I really hope Steve used those earplugs._

The thought made him laugh.

"What?" Bucky panted, trying to catch his breath.

"Nothing I can talk about in bed," Sam responded.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this was a bit short, sorry about that. Hopefully I'll get the final chapter out soon!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I added another chapter. Now it's 6 in total. I'm sorry. I hope the people who are still reading can stick with me after this. Just one more chapter to go!

Even though he personally knew Black Widow, Captain America and the Winter Soldier, it felt surreal to meet all the Avengers while suited up. Banner mostly kept to himself, and didn't do much more than give Sam a introductory handshake. Stark kept throwing Sam's wings longing glances, but was too busy to talk to Sam himself. Hawkeye was more forthcoming, but he was quickly pushed aside for Natasha's sake, who gave him a big hug. Despite all of Steve's missions with SHIELD lately, Sam and Natasha hadn't met since they found Bucky. He hugged her back tightly; he'd missed her too.

"Steve won't tell me anything about his personal life," Natasha said as a greeting. "You have to tell me. Did you use the things I packed down for you?"

"Well..." Sam didn't know what to say exactly. Natasha probably knew _something_ had happened, but he wasn't sure if he could tell her what. It hadn't gone too well at first when he tried to explain it to his sister, and she was biologically obligated to be on his side. He doubted Natasha would let him finish the whole story, and explain his train of thought, before jumping to a bad conclusion and kick him in the groin. "It's complicated," he settled on in the end.

She huffed, disappointed. "You will tell me someday," she swore.

The Quinjet's hangar door opened, which meant Sam was lucky free to jump out before Natasha made  _someday_ into  _today._

Steve and Bucky were already on the ground. He'd given Bucky a brief good luck kiss before they started, but they'd decided not to dwell too much on  _what if_. Better to just get to it.

It felt like a lifetime since he'd put on his wings, and soaring through the air filled him with bubbling joy. For a moment he forgot they were there with a mission, and he did some loops, shouting happily. Iron Man shot past him in all his golden glory.

"Done playing around?" he questioned.

"You're hardly one to judge, Stark," Hawkeye said over the coms.

Stark laughed. "That's probably true. Come on, Falcon, follow my lead!" He flew downwards and Sam followed him.

The alien tech was apparently a biological virus of some sort, which spread like a green mist throughout the city. The area was mostly evacuated, but there were still some stragglers and agents left behind. A lot of people had gathered on the rooftops to get away from the poisonous mist. Sam's job was pretty straight-forward: get to the people on the high buildings to safety. It would be easy, only he was only one man and he could only carry one person at the time. Two, tops, if they didn't weight much. Still, he did his best.  

*

Back on the Quinjet, Sam felt like he wanted to go to bed and never leave. His whole body ached, and not in the pleasant just-got-fucked kind of way. He pulled out his goggles and wiped the sweat off his forehead. Iron Man, Hawkeye, Hulk and Black Widow were all there, but Steve and Bucky were still missing. Sam was just about to ask where they were, trying not to feel too panicked, when the hanger opened and they stepped through. They both looked about as exhausted and dirty as Sam felt.

Bucky immediately caught sight of him and stalked by everyone else to grab him in his arms. Sam hugged him tightly. He was familiar with this post-danger need for physical contact. They both wanted reassurance that the other was still here, still breathing, the body still warm. He and Riley always used to embrace after a mission.

"Are you okay?" Sam asked. Instead of answering, Bucky pulled back, took Sam's face in his hands, and kissed him.  _This_ he didn't use to do with Riley, but Sam got it. They were both still full of adrenalin, and had just had a scare. Sam kissed back, pulling his fingers through his hair to calm him. "It's okay," he whispered against Bucky's lips. "I'm okay."

That didn't make Bucky stop the way he thought it would. Bucky pressed their lips together again, opening his mouth to deepen the kiss. He pushed their bodies close together, pulling Sam as close against his chest as humanly possible. It caught Sam slightly off guard, and he kissed back automatically before brutally being reminded that they had an audience.

"Wait!" Tony Stark exclaimed, making them pull apart. He stood not far from them, staring at them with wide eyes. "I thought Bucky Barnes and Captain America were, you know." He turned around to look at Steve.

Steve was sitting down with his head hung forward, looking like someone resigned to the fate of having his friends constantly making out around him. "Close friends?" he suggested without looking up. "Because we are. So are Sam and I."

"So what, you're in this weird threeway...?"

"No!" Steve, Sam and Bucky shouted before he could even finish the sentence.

"Sam and I are friends, so are Bucky and I," Steve explained. "They on the other hand are together." There was a long silence where no one really knew what to say.

Then Natasha burst out laughing. She laughed and laughed until she had tears in her eyes, while they all stared at her, confused. "I understand so much about Steve's behaviour these past months now," she wheezed, trying to catch her break. She wiped away some tears, and nodded at Sam and Bucky. "You didn't have to stop what you were doing on our account. You can keep going."

Sam was ready to rebuff her, but Bucky took that as an invitation to kiss him again. Sam put a hand on his chest to stop him, shaking his head. Bucky, thankfully, didn't push, but he did give him a kicked-puppy type of look. As if Sam was at fault here for not wanting to put on a show in front of strangers.

Luckily, they were off in the air a moment later, and everyone got too busy giving their reports and cleaning up to keep pushing. The moment Sam and Bucky got alone, Sam hissed, "We've talked about this!"

"I know, I know, Steve was right there," Bucky said apologetically. "I was just so scared, and then I saw you there with the others and the way..."

"I get it," Sam interrupted. "I do, and I wanted to grab you too and never let you go. But there are lines. It's not just about Steve; I don't like _anyone_ seeing us that intimate."

Bucky's eyes darkened. "Why not?" he asked challengingly.

"Because it's private."

"Or maybe you're ashamed?" he accused.

"Ashamed of what? I've told everyone that matters that we're together already, and you're meeting my sister next week!" She'd been surprisingly up for the idea of meeting Bucky. Sam had to remember to tell her not to expect the cartoon version of Bucky Barnes from the Howling Commandos.

"But you don't want people to _see_ us together."

Sam was going to go mad. "I just kissed you in front of a bunch of people! But there's a huge difference between kissing someone in public, and grinding against someone in public. One is fine, the other belongs behind closed doors."

Bucky crossed his arms over his chest. He looked oddly wounded, as if Sam had just insulted him or something. Sam sighed deeply, reminding himself that Bucky's human interactions these past decades had been limited to say the least.

"What's the matter?" Sam asked. "Just tell me."

"Stark," he bit out, which really wasn't what Sam was expecting. "Before Steve and I left, I caught him looking at you with interest."

Living with a guy for a few months did make it easier to understand his train of thought, and suddenly, it all made some sort of twisted sense. "You thought Tony was into me, and then you figured you'd stop him from hitting on me by making it clear I'm taken, just like you did with Steve. Am I close?"

"You're not far away," Bucky admitted.

"Bucky, it's one thing when it's Steve because we both have history with him," Sam said calmly, "but Tony Stark? Why would you care if he looks at me?"

"Because he's attractive, and rich, and a superhero..."

"You're a superhero."

"No I'm not," Bucky snapped, and Sam was taken aback by his anger. "I'm an assassin for hire. I've done things no hero has ever done before. Now my employers just happen to be the good guys, but we'll see how long that lasts. You, on the other hand, have always been a good guy."

Sam cupped Bucky's neck, pressuring him to look up and meet Sam's eyes. "You didn't have a choice about what you wanted to do for a long time, Bucky. When the choice was taken away, you were forced to do bad things." Bucky looked away again, and moved to push Sam's hands off. "But," he went on, keeping his grip firm, "the moment you got your choice back, you decided to join the good guys despite the risks to your life and wellbeing. That's pretty heroic to me." He kissed Bucky's cheek, and lingered with his lips against his skin.

"That doesn't mean Stark isn't..."

He pulled back. "Bucky, seriously." The softness left Sam's voice, and he tried sounding strict. "You need to stop thinking that I'll leave you the moment someone else shows any interest in me. First of all, I'm not that easy." That earned a weak twitch of Bucky's lips. "Second, I'd never do that to you." He kissed Bucky's other cheek. "Would you leave me if Stark was interested in you?"

"No, but that's different," Bucky said. "I know I would never leave you, so I'm not worried about it."

"Well, I know I'll never leave you. But I don't know _you'll_ never leave me, because I can't read your mind, so I'm allowed to be worried about that."

Bucky huffed, but he looked amused. "Is this about how I should be more empathetic to other people's feelings?"

"Yes."

He sighed. "Fine. I'll try to stop believing everyone is going to steal you away from me."

"You need to trust me."

Bucky smiled softly and cupped Sam's cheek. "I do trust you. I'm sorry. I overreacted." He kissed Sam, and since they were alone, Sam allowed his lips to fall open and their tongues to tangle. They stood there for a while, kissing deeply, sharing their mutual joy that the other was alright. That they were still alive to do this.

"By the way," Sam said between kisses, "Stark was not looking at me with interest. It was the wings."

"That's just weird."

*

"I think it's time for me to move out," Steve said.

Sam dropped his spoon into the cereal bowl, splashing milk over the table. "What?"

Steve handed him a napkin. "I think it's time for me to find a place of my own."

"Okay?" Sam had no idea how to react. He'd wanted to ask Steve to move out for months now, but he'd never really gotten to it. He should be happy really, but he couldn't help but wonder, "Why now?"

Steve shrugged. "Bucky seems to be doing okay." Sam glanced over his shoulder; Bucky still hadn't come out of his morning shower. "I've already told him," Steve said reassuringly. "I suggested it a while ago, actually, but Bucky asked me to stay a bit longer."

"He did?" Sam and Bucky were going to have  _words_ about that later.

"He wasn't sure he could completely trust himself," Steve admitted. "I think he was mostly afraid that if he ended up in a violent situation again he'd go back to being the Winter Soldier. That was why he insisted on me staying with him on the Avengers mission."

"So you'd take him down if you needed to." Sam felt bad for not realising that Bucky was still carrying around such a deep fear.

"But the mission went off normally, and we've been back for a week now and nothing's happened. We both think he's safe."

"Safe for me, you mean?"

Steve smile was sad. "He'd never forgive himself if he hurt you. But he won't," he quickly added.

"I know he won't." Sam wouldn't be taking Bucky to meet his sister tomorrow if he wasn't sure about that.

"So there's no need for me to stay. To be honest, I mostly feel like I'm in the way."

Well, Sam couldn't argue with that. "Have you found an apartment?"

"Natasha has a safe house not far from here that she never uses. She says I can stay there as long as I pay rent."

Sam laughed. "That's very kind of her." Natasha had shown up literally an hour after they'd returned from the Avengers mission with a sixpack, kicked out Sam and Bucky for the evening, sat down on his couch, and simply said, "Explain." So Sam had explained. Natasha, thankfully, did not immediately assume that Sam was an asshole for sleeping with Bucky while Steve was right there in the bed (and Sam still could not believe he actually did that). In fact, the whole thing seemed to amuse her beyond belief.

Steve looked surprisingly somber by the whole ordeal. Sam would've thought he'd be excited to get somewhere where he didn't constantly have to worry that he'd catch Sam or Bucky half naked.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Sam wanted to smack himself in the face. He wanted Steve to leave, and he shouldn't give him an opportunity to back out.

Bucky finally emerged from the shower, dressed only in sweats, his hair still damp. He put his hand on Sam's shoulder and leaned down to give him a kiss, before sitting down on the chair next to him. Sam poured him some cereal.

"Yeah," Steve said. "I'm pretty sure."

"Sure about what?" Bucky asked, shovelling cereal into his mouth.

"Moving out," Sam said. "Our baby is leaving the nest."

Bucky snorted. "I'm glad for you Steve. No grown man wants to brings dates to his parent's home."

"Okay, the parent metaphor was a big mistake," Sam said realised. "No more." The idea of him and Bucky being anything like Steve's parents was, quite frankly, horrifying. Especially since they've both slept with him.

"I will admit it's hard to bring back dates when you don't know when your roommates are going to be shouting through the walls," Steve said. This time, Bucky dropped his spoon into the bowl.

"Was that a joke about my sex life?" Steve went hilariously pink. "I am so proud of you. You're all grown up." He picked up his spoon again and used it to point at Steve. "Remember; condoms."

"I thought I said no more parent stuff," Sam said.

"That wasn't a joke. That was a friend giving advice to a friend. Condoms. Always. With men and women."

And now Steve was so red Sam thought he might spontaneously combust. "You two don't." He looked like he regretted saying it the moment it got out. "I-I mean, when I do the groceries, it's never on the..." he stuttered.

"Sam and I are both tested and clean."

"And I can't get pregnant," Sam added jokingly. He finished his bowl and took it to the sink. When he returned to the table, there was an odd tension between Bucky and Steve. They were staring at each other, unblinking.

"Steve," Bucky said slowly.

"You said you wouldn't," Steve whined.

"Steve," Bucky repeated, still without blinking.

Steve groaned and hung his head forward, admitting defeat. ""I'm going for a run. I'm glad I won't have to worry about these things anymore." He left the table without doing the dishes after himself, which was kind of rude.

"What's gong on?" Sam asked once the door closed behind Steve.

 

Bucky stood up and crowded Sam against the kitchen table. He put his hands on Sam's hips and leaned close enough to kiss, but didn't quite let their lips touch. "Back in the day, you always needed protection or you might get a girl pregnant."

"Right." Sam's heart was already speeding up at the close proximity of their bodies, and he wasn't really paying a lot of attention to what Bucky was saying. He tried to catch Bucky's lips, but Bucky turned at the last moment and Sam's kiss ended up on his cheek. Sam trailed open-mouthed kisses over his cheekbones, down his jaw.

"But sometimes I'd think that could be pretty cool."

Sam paused with his lips against Bucky's neck and pulled back. "Are you trying to tell me you have a kid out there somewhere?"

"Of course not. I wasn't going to have a child when I could barely feed myself."

"That does remind me, you don't pay rent. I didn't really want to bring it up, but now that Steve's leaving..."

Bucky shook his head, smiled fondly and gave Sam a peck on the lips. "The kid wasn't necessarily the point."

Sam tried to make the kiss last, but Bucky pulled away again. He let out a frustrated growl. "What was then?"

"I don't know, to be honest Showing people that she's with me, maybe? Having her carry the proof of what we did around with her?"

"Keeping other men from trying it on with her?" Sam suggested. "I guess you don't just feel this jealousy about me then."

Bucky hummed, and finally caved in for a real kiss. "I can assure you that no one's ever made me feel what you feel." The sweetness of the words was somewhat undermined by Bucky grinding their hips together. "I want people to know that you're with me." He kissed Sam again, catching his lower lip between his teeth. "That you're mine." He moved his lips down to his neck, and Sam felt the familiar rush of blood to where another hickey would be ending up.

Sam tugged at his hair to get his face back up so they could share another kiss. He dragged his fingers over Bucky's shoulders, scratching lightly - Bucky wasn't the only one who liked to leave marks. Bucky tugged at his shirt, and Sam suddenly got what Steve had been annoyed about: kitchen sex was apparently going to be a thing now. They pulled apart briefly so Sam could get his shirt off, and the break gave him time to pant out, "Too bad you can't knock me up then."

In a moment, Bucky's pupils widened, his cock went fully hard and something dark crossed his face.

"Wait, really?" Sam barely had time to express his surprise and amusement before Bucky grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. The edge up the table dug into Sam's hips, just above hardening cock, which meant he couldn't get any friction. Bucky was thankfully sympathetic about that, and wrapped his arm around Sam's hip so he could palm his cock while he dragged his teeth over Sam's back, sending tingles down his spine. "Okay, okay, you've sold me."

Bucky put his palm between Sam's shoulder blades and pushed him down against the table. He ended up with his cheek pressed against the wood, his legs spread wide, while Bucky pulled down his pants. He felt exposed like this, but that made it all the more exciting. Bucky fell to his knees and nosed up his naked thighs, before burying his face in Sam's ass.

"Oh fuck!" Sam cursed, digging his fingers into the table. Bucky hadn't rimmed him in a long time, and he'd almost forgotten the toe-curling pleasure it brought him. Bucky licked over his hole over and over rhythmically, never changing pace or movement, driving him mad. Sam managed to twist his body enough to reach for Bucky's head, trying to made him to move faster or deeper or  _something._ Bucky stopped everything when Sam touched him, which was the complete opposite of what he was trying to achieve.

"Hands on the table," he growled. Sam scrambled to follow the order. He grabbed around the table edges to remain steady, and Bucky went back to licking over his hole.

"Please," Sam whined, his cock bobbing alone and useless between his legs.

Bucky finally took pity to him. He stood up and began pressing his fingers into Sam's hole. Sam did not know where he got the lube from, and someday he really had to ask where his hiding spots where. Bucky leaned over his back, whispering into his ear. "You're so wet for me already." Sam moaned and nodded in agreement. "You want me to fill you up?"

"Yeah, yeah," Sam jabbered. Bucky crooked his fingers, hitting his prostate. "Fuck, come on, come on."

There was the sound of Bucky taking his pants off, and then Sam felt his naked cock against his asscheek. Bucky didn't push inside immediately though. He lined up between Sam's asscheeks, and began grinding up and down along his crack. He took hold of each of Sam's cheeks and pressed them together to create a tight space for his cock, and he let out an erotic moan that made Sam's cock leak precome. The head of his cock kept hitting Sam's balls, but it was not nearly enough friction to give him any type of satisfaction.

"I love it when you're like this," Bucky breathed. "You feel so good."

"I'm glad you're satisfied," Sam grumbled. But he didn't have it in him to be bitter. The near animalistic noises Bucky was making set his whole body on fire. He loved knowing that Bucky was feeling pleasure.

"What do you want, Sam?"

Oh, so this was the game they were playing. "I want you to fuck me."

"Mhm." Bucky pulled his cock up until it was just by Sam's rim, but then he pushed down past it again, hitting the back of Sam's sack and making him let out a frustrated curse.

"Fuck, get inside of me."

"And do what?" Bucky's hands went around Sam's hips, creeping up on either side of Sam's cock. He didn't touch him though, just teased along his pubic hairs. He leaned forward again and nipped him on the shoulder blades. "Tell me." He buried his teeth just below Sam's neck, and he shouted out loudly.

"Fill me up," he babbled desperately. "Fuck me, cum in me, make me yours. Make everyone know that I'm..." Bucky got off him, leaving him cold along the back, and he worried he'd said the wrong thing.

Bucky took a steady grip on his asscheeks and parted them so he could see Sam's hole. "That is exactly what Il'll do." The head of his cock finally caught on the rim and he pushed forward slowly. The air left Sam's lungs as he was filled, inch by inch. His knuckles turned white as his grip on the table hardened. Bucky's hips met his ass, and they both took a moment to stand completely still and just breathe.

Bucky pulled back out again, and pushed inside with more force. There was a loud screech when the table slid forward over the floor.

"Everyone will know," Bucky panted, and pulled out again. "You're with me." He shoved inside, and the table moved forward by another inch.  "I'm going to fill you like no one else can."

"No one fucking- _ah_." Bucky pushed in again, and Sam was unable to finish his sentence.

"Mine," he growled.

"And you're mine," Sam voice was barely above a whisper, his lungs having too hard of a time taking up air.

"Say that again." Bucky hit his prostate hard, making him see stars.

"Fuck, yes, you're mine!" he shouted out.

Bucky sped up, snapping his hips forward. Loud, slapping noises filled the room. Bucky's flesh hand had a bruising grip on Sam's hip, while the metal one slid over the sweat on Sam's back and wrapped around the back of his neck. Sam's cock was still neglected, but at that moment he didn't really care. He loved the feeling of Bucky's cock pulling in and out of him, of his hips smacking up against his ass, his hands on his skin.

"Yes, yours Sam," Bucky moaned. Sam shuddered; he didn't think he'd ever get used to the sound of his name rolling off Bucky's tongue in moments like these. "Forever." He reached a speed where all Sam could do was hang on for the ride. The table was splintering apart in his hands.

Bucky let go of Sam's neck and  _finally_ wrapped a hand around Sam's cock. He gathered the precome and used it to stroke over his cock in tact with his thrusts. Sam was already so turned it only took a few more hits against his prostate for him to come all over Bucky's fist. "Bucky!" he shouted as he came. He was happy that he was lying over a table or he'd have fallen to the ground by now.

Bucky's forceful thrusts turned erratic. He let go of Sam's softening cock and he took a steady hold of his hips as he chased his release. He pumped in and out out of Sam once, twice, three times, and then sheathed himself completely and came with a guttural moan that made Sam's entire body burst with scorching heat.

Bucky stayed there for a while, panting loudly, as his cock softened inside him. Sam's ass felt raw, but he didn't protest. They were never as close as they were when they fucked, when Bucky was not just around him but also inside of him.

Once Bucky had caught his breath he pulled out slowly, and Sam winced at the loss. He was just about to ask Bucky to help him get off the table, because his arms felt like jelly, when he heard Bucky's knees hit the ground. He buried his face in Sam's ass again, but it felt different this time. Cum was running down his thighs, and Bucky followed it with his tongue. It should not feel as hot as it did.

"Bucky," Sam whined. As hot as it was, his ass was oversensitive from the fucking and he couldn't take much more stimulation. Bucky bit his asscheek, probably leaving a mark, and stood up.

He helped Sam get back on his wobbly feet, and they made their way to the sofa where they collapsed in a sweaty heap.

"You really like coming in me, don't you?" Sam teased. Bucky looked slightly ashamed, and Sam laughed. "There are worse kinks to have. Although I must say, if you're really into the whole caveman 'mine' or 'yours' thing you should consider coming on me next time." Bucky perked up at that. "I said next time," he warned. "My ass won't be ready to go for another three days, at least."

"My ass can go," Bucky suggested. Sam straightened up in his seat. Bucky bottoming wasn't something they'd ever really discussed. Ever since the first time Sam had just naturally always ended up as the bottom. "Not right now, I just came and I don't think my cock can take any stimulation. But sometime."

"If you like." But now Sam's head was filled with pictures of Bucky bending over the table same way he just had. Opening Bucky's hole one finger at the time, pressing inside slowly, fucking into him as he moaned. His cock gave a futile twitch, but he wasn't ready to get hard against just yet.

"Right now I'd just like to take a shower."

Sam shoved him aside and shot off the sofa. "Me first!"

*

Steve came back from his run and went straight for packing. Despite wanting him out since forever, Sam was almost sad to see him go. It was the end of an era. They'd lived together for almost a year now. He'd grown used to sharing his living space with two other grown men.

It was odd to imagine that less than a year ago, he hadn't known Bucky other than 'that guy who tried to kill me once'. Less than a year ago, he'd fucked Steve in a motel, and then had his heart broken.

It felt like a lifetime ago. Like a different man had been in love with Steve and feared Bucky, and now a new one was friends with Steve and trusted Bucky with his life.

"Time flies by," Sam mumbled to himself.

How the hell had he survived sharing his home with Steve for almost a year? After everything they went through? After Bucky and he got together? Sam didn't know if it was a testament to the perseverance of their friendship, or Sam's inability to stand up for himself. Either way, they were friends, Steve was leaving, and Bucky... Well, Bucky was out buying something. He hadn't specified what exactly. This did bring up a very strange uncomfortable question, though.

When Steve was living with them, it made sense for him to take the guest room and for Sam and Bucky to share the other room since they tended to have sex most nights. Now that Steve was gone, that left one room empty. Sam didn't expect Bucky to go stay in the guest room, but that meant they shared a room by choice. That meant they were officially living together. As a couple.

Okay, Sam was not freaking out. This wasn't like when normal couples moved in together. He was sure Bucky wasn't having these types of thoughts. They were just doing their thing. No need to assume they're more serious than they were.

Yep, Sam was completely calm. Never been so calm in his life.

He went to the kitchen and splashed his face with some cold water. It was hard not to look at the table. They'd cleaned it after the shower, but Sam doubted he'd be able to eat a proper breakfast there ever again.

The front door opened and Bucky rused into the kitchen, still in his jacket, looking flushed and excited.  "I thought about what we were talking about."

Sam couldn't help but also feel the excitement that Bucky was radiating. "You're going to have to be more specifik." He teased.

"About how I enjoy letting people know that we're together."

"I'd say you're slightly obsessed, but go on."

"I think I know a way." He held dug into his jacket pocket.

"Okay, I don't judge other people's kinks, but if this is some dog collar stuff I have to tell you it's not my thing."

Bucky laughed, even though Sam was being completely serious. He pulled his hand out of the pocket, and took a ring out with it. He presented the ring to Sam, and smiled at him openly, as if to say 'Ta-da!'. Sam blinked a few times, making sure he was seeing right.

"Is that an engagement right?" Sam needed it confirmed audibly as well as visually.

"Yeah. I was going to be all romantic about it, but I couldn't wait." There was a thrumming energy in Bucky's body that Sam had never seen before. He looked just about ready to start jumping up and down like a child. He looked so happy and Sam wanted to be happy for him. Wanted to be pleased that Bucky had come so far that he could show his happiness out in the open like this. But he couldn't bring himself to feel anything other than completely blindsided. "It's for you," he added, as if Sam wasn't already aware of that.

Sam had to support himself against the kitchen sink. "Okay, just... Okay." Then, suddenly, he got it. Oh, thank god, he got it. He started laughing, shaking his head. Bucky's smile fell, and he lowered his hand. "No, Bucky, don't get sad." Sam grabbed his wrist and pulled him closer. "This isn't want you think it is."

"What isn't?"

"You don't just get people engagement rings to show off that you're together. It's a commitment. It leads to marriage. It's for people who love each other and want to spend the rest of their lives together."

Bucky nodded, and now he almost looked amused. "I know."

 _Oh._ Well, then Sam did not get it. He let go of Bucky's wrist. "What?"

"I told you earlier. I'm yours, forever. And you're mine. I thought..."

"Okay." Sam put his hands up, trying to figure out how to diffuse this situation. "As a general rule, you should not take what people say right before an orgasm too seriously. We're not, you know." He couldn't find the words. "We're not exactly in a traditional relationship."

"We live together," he pointed out.

"Well, yes, but..."

"We see each other every day. We fight and face dangers together on missions. We trust each other with our secrets. Physically, we're very compatible. What else is there  to have in a relationship?"

When he put it like that, it made Sam felt kind of dumb. "I don't know. Dating?" But the moment he said it, a million memories of them eating out together, watching movies, going on runs, came to him. "Okay." That seemed to be the word of the day. "But people who get married are usually in love."

"I love you," Bucky said, completely and utterly sincerely. Sam believed him.

"Okay."

Sam left the kitchen, the building, and had probably left the city by the time he stopped running.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you thought in the comments!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final chapter! I did it! We did it!
> 
> For everyone who stuck with it to the end, thanks! This was supposed to be a two-chapter, slightly angsty plot with porn, and it grew. I hope you like how it went. Feel free to leave comments to let me know!

Sam wasn't sure where he was when Steve caught up with him. They were in some sort of wooden area, but Sam didn't recognise it. He bent over, wheezing, trying to catch his breath. His shirt was soaked with sweat, and his muscles were cramping. He'd never ran so hard and fast in his life, and he'd been in active war zones.

Steve got a water bottle from somewhere and handed it over. It was possible that Steve even left and returned several times without Sam noticing. He was too busy trying to stay steady on his feet. He swallowed the water down greedily, and then poured a bit over his head.

"Jesus christ!" he shouted the moment his throat wasn't too dry to make any sounds. Some birds left their branches and flew off.

"Why don't we sit down?" Steve suggested.

Sam had completely missed the small bench, and he basically stumbled into it head-first. Steve had to help steady him so he'd sit down properly on his ass.

"What have I done?" Sam buried his face in his hands, trying to figure out what exactly lead to this very moment. Steve sat down next to him. His shirt was also damp, and his breathing was a bit shallow, meaning that Sam had given even him a run for his money. "This is all your fault," he told him. "This all started with you."

"Sam..."

"No, you fucked me in that motel. Then you tried to fuck Bucky. That's what made this all happen. You broke my heart, I tried to hurt you back, and now I've completely destroyed Bucky in the process." He thought about how he'd left Bucky in the kitchen, completely alone with the engagement right, without explanation or even a fucking answer to the question. He was going to throw up. Although, that might also be from the running. "He wants to get married."

"I know. The walls are thin, remember? Why do you think I ran after you?"

"I don't know, why did you run after me?" He took another deep sip from the water bottle. "Are you here to beat me up for hurting your best friend? Usually I wouldn't blame you, I'd do the same, but it would hardly be a fair fight."

"I'm not here to hurt anyone. I'm just trying to stay out of the way." There was something so very sad in his voice that Sam couldn't help but be momentarily distracted from his his own woes.

"Steve?"

"I think I got something confused." Steve's eyes was caught on something between the trees. "I don't know if Bucky told you, but back in the day, we used help each other get off."

Sam made a face. "He did, and I did not need ot hear that again."

"It wasn't just him and me. We were at war, people got lonely..."

"I get it. You were giving each other bro-jobs. It was all very no homo. We laughed about it."

"I thought it was the same now."

That gave Sam pause. "You mean, when you and I...?"

"I figured it was just another one of those times when we helped each other get off. I didn't think there might be feelings involved. Then we found Bucky, and he was all I could thought about."

Sam sat completely frozen. For all this time, he'd a hard time to put together the image of his friend Steve, and that asshole who fucked him and then dropped him like he was worth nothing. He hadn't been able to understand how they were the same person. But now it all made sense. He didn't know if he should laugh or cry. "You should have said something."

"I didn't think..."

"I was in love with you!" He'd never said it out loud like that before. He'd thought it would be scary, but those feelings were so old now it hardly seemed to matter anymore. "You broke my heart."

"And you broke mine."

"How the hell did I do that?"

"You got together with Bucky."

Sam threw his arms up. "It's not my fault Bucky isn't in love with you. He had an equal choice between the both of us that night, in bed, and he chose me." Which might have been a mistake on his part.

"That's not what I... Sam, you're not listening!" Steve exclaimed, sounding frustrated. "I didn't know it was anything more than a quick fuck. We came home, with Bucky, and I thought I could cheer him up. And then you and him got together, and that's what I realised...

"Realised what?"

"That I'm an idiot. That I'd missed all the signs. I realised that it meant more to you than just us getting each other off. I realised it meant more to me."

Sam's mouth went dry in a way that any amount of water couldn't help. "What?"

Steve closed his eyes. "I loved you." Sam's life had already been completely flipped over once today, and he hadn't thought it could get any messier. He'd been wrong. "But I was an idiot, I didn't recognise the feeling until it was too late."

"You didn't say."

"The moment I realised, you and Bucky had already slept together and then it was like you'd been together for years. You moved into the same room, and you kept going out together. More importantly, you made him happy. You were a real couple and I was afraid to get in the middle of that. That's why I wanted to leave. Do you think it's easy, seeing the guy you love dating your best friend?"

Sam got off the bench, and tried to limp away. "That's not... You can't put this on me."

"I'm not!" he said hurriedly, going after him. "None of this is your fault. I fucked up. I acted like a jerk and broke your heart. I know that." He grabbed Sam's shoulder to help steady him. "And I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

Sam's head was spinning, but he couldn't figure out if it was because he was just tired from the run, or if everything that'd happened these past months was finally getting to him.

"That's why I wanted to leave you two alone," Steve went on. "You're the most important people in my life and I want you to be happy. You make him happy, and he makes you happy. At least, I thought he did."

"What do you mean?" Sam managed to get steady on his feet, but Steve's hand was still on his shoulder.

"You're obviously not as into Bucky as he is to you."

"I don't know where I am with Bucky," Sam admitted. "It's all just happening so fast. A moment ago I barely knew him, and now he wants to get married. Marriage is forever, Steve."

Steve put his remaining hand on Sam's other shoulder, positioning them completely face-to-face. "I know. And if you running away is anything to go by, I'm guessing you're not up for that."

"People who get married should be together because they're in love. Not because one of them was petty and wanted to hurt his ex."

A complicated look passed Steve's face. "Are you still with him because you want to hurt me?"

"No, of course not! That was just the first night. After that..." After that, Bucky decided that he wanted to live in Sam's bedroom, and Sam didn't stop him. There was no other way to describe it. "I never meant for it to be more than just that one night, and now it's developed into something huge and I didn't even notice." It wasn't all on Bucky. Sam had encouraged the relationship, made promises, commitments. Just a few days ago he'd said he'd never leave Bucky for anyone else, and that was a pretty big promise to make. How long was the jump from that, to promising to be together forever?

It occurred to him that he was kind of an asshole, constantly sending mixed messages. No wonder Bucky was always so confused about their relationship.

"If I hadn't been such a jerk..." Steve swallowed hard. "If I'd recognised all the signals you were sending me right away, and been better to you after we slept together. If I hadn't tried to sleep with Bucky and hurt you. Would you be with him now?"

That was a good question. If he'd never caught Steve and Bucky in bed, would he ever have made a move on Bucky? Or would he just have waited around patiently until Steve decided to move out, and took Bucky with him?

"If I hadn't hurt you the way I did," Steve went on, "would you - would you and I...?"

It suddenly occurred to Sam that they were very standing close. Steve's fingers were digging into his shoulders, and now that Sam had cooled a bit he could feel the heat radiating from Steve's body. His cheeks were pink, his hair a mess. A single drop of sweat went down his temple.

If Steve and Sam had gotten together like he thought they would after that night, would he even have considered sleeping Bucky, even less marrying him? Probably not. In a different world, he would have been together with Steve. They would be the ones who fucked on the kitchen table while Bucky muttered about moving out, they would be the ones who kissed in front of the Avengers and confusing Tony Stark, and Steve would be the one he was bringing to meet his sister tomorrow. Hell, he'd probably have introduced Steve to his entire family a whole lot sooner. And maybe, just maybe, Steve would have been the one with the engagement ring, asking him to commit for life. Would he have run away if it was Steve? He'd been willing to risk his life for Steve after only meeting him a few times, so accepting a marriage proposal probably wouldn't have been too hard.

"I...probably."

And Steve was so close now, he could count Steve's eyelashes and feel his breath against his lips. Steve's hands moved up to cup his neck, and he brought their bodies closer.

When you'd run a marathon through half the state to get away from someone, it wasn't easy to start running again. Still, Sam ignored his protesting muscles and his constricting lungs, and ran and ran and ran.

He didn't stop until his vision turned spotty and his stomach turned over, forcing him to go and throw up in a trashcan. A kind woman passing by checked to see if he was fine, and offered to call the hospital, but he shook his head and instead asked her to call his sister since he'd forgotten his phone at home.

Sarah picked him up in her car, and was kind enough not to ask any question until after they'd stopped by McDonalds to get him some food and water. He downed three cups of water in one go, and then swallowed down three burgers. He didn't know how long it'd been since he'd last eaten. She drove him to her place, and asked her husband to take the kids out for a while. Her husband looked like he was ready to protest, but when he caught sight of Sam in his sweat drenched shirt, looking like he'd collapse with a heart attack at any moment, he agreed.

Sarah sat him down on the sofa, and then took a seat in front of him. "Explain," she demanded. So he did. He explained how he'd been making a commitment to Bucky all this time without realising it, stringing him along and never considering what Bucky was feeling about the whole thing. He explained about Steve's confession, the almost-kiss.

"What should I do?" Sam asked once he was done.

Sarah took a few moments to take it all in. Then she said, "How did you end up in this mess?"

Sam buried his face in his hands. "I don't know."

She sighed and placed her hand on his knee. "Look, this thing with Bucky, it happens. One person reads too much into the relationship, or the other wants to go at a slower pace. It's okay to freak out and want to slow down. You just need to tell him that, instead of, you know, running away."

"You're right," he said. "I should have just stayed and explained that I'm confused. But I just had to get out of that kitchen. I couldn't breathe, Sarah."

"I know, and that's okay," she said soothingly. His breathing evened out; her reassurance was making him feel much calmer and more collected. "Normally, I'd tell you to take a few breaths, maybe take a nap, and then go home and try to talk this through with Bucky. But now..."

"Now Steve got involved, which makes it less normal," Sam finished for her.

She took a deep breath. "It complicates the whole thing. You fucked Steve when you were in love with him, then you got together with Bucky while Steve was in love with you. Bucky and Steve used to fuck, and they're best friends, have known each other since the 1940's and fought in a war together. This isn't just a mess, it's a drama that's been stretched out since before you were even born. Whatever happens, whatever choice you make, you could ruin a decade old friendship and at least one of you will get his heart broken."

"I think everyone's had their heart broken at this point."

She took his hand, and tangled their fingers together. "If this was one of you patients at the VA," she started slowly, "what would you say to them?" Sam shook his head. "Come on Sam, what would you say?"

"I'd tell them to remove themselves from the situation. It's like you said, the whole thing is a mess. I'm caught between people whose history predates my existence. At leat one of them has hurt me bad already."

"Okay. Now, is that what you want to do? Do you want to leave? You can come and stay here with us, if that's what you feel is the right thing for you."

"I... I don't know. I mean, it's the smart thing to do, but I don't want to remove myself. Bucky and Steve, above all else, are my friends. They've both made me happy at some point. I don't want to throw away my shot of being with someone who makes me happy." The thought of losing them was a physical ache. The problem was, he couldn't figure out which one it was that hurt him the most.

"Then you've got to choose. Either you go back to Bucky, tell him you want to be together but slow things down, or you go to Steve and tell him you're willing to forgive him and give him another shot."

"It's not as simple as it sounds." He felt like his head was going to explode. This was too much for one day. Could it really have been just this morning that Bucky fucked him over the kitchen table, filling him with pleasure and giddy happiness?

Sarah let go of his hand and leaned back, giving him a considering look. "I think it's a pretty obvious choice." Sam let out a breath of relief. This was what he needed; someone telling him what to do. Because he sure as hell didn't know it himself. "It's Steve."

"What?" He didn't know why the answer shocked him so much. Steve was one of the choices after all. Yet, it felt like he'd have been less surprised if she'd chosen Tony Stark or Natasha.

"He's Captain America. Who the hell says no to that? Not to mention you've known him longer, and he's really hot, and he's a superhero."

"Bucky is a hero too," Sam said defensively. "He was in the Howling Commandos, same as Steve. He's gone back to SHIELD, and wants to work with protecting the world. He's kind and funny, and he's _really_ hot. Seriously the things he can do with his tongue. " Sarah made a face that probably meant  _too much information_. "He's always been good to me. He's never lied to me or hurt me. The opposite, he's been going out of his way to work on his problems so he won't hurt me. He makes me happy and..." Sarah's face had slowly morphed into a smile, and she looked oddly pleased with herself. "And you did that on purpose. You knew that I was going to defend Bucky."

"I thought it was pretty clear who you'd chose from the start, but you needed to figure it out on your own."

"How did you know it was Bucky?"

"In all your years, how many times have you brought home a man or woman to meet your family?"

Sam shrugged. "Once?"

"Exactly, and you thought you were going to marry that girl."

He had, until she chose to move away with work. It worked out better for both of them anyway; he would never have joined the Falcon program if he'd had someone at home worried about him, and the move was the right step for her career to flourish the way it had. They still sent each other e-mails from time to time, and they both agreed breaking up had been the right call.

"You were planning to bring Bucky to see me," Sarah said. "And if I approved, you would have brought him to meet the rest of the family too. Am I wrong?"

Sam shrugged again. He hadn't actually thought about it, but it was rather obvious. If Sarah had given Bucky a thumbs up, he'd have no excuse not to introduce him to everyone else. Bucky wasn't dangerous, he'd proven that, and if Sarah liked him the rest of the family would too.

"You wouldn't do that if you didn't have strong feelings for him, whether you've realised you have those feelings or not."

Sam shot to his feet and was halfway to the door when his legs gave out. Sarah managed to catch him on time, but just barely. "I need to go," he said hurriedly, trying to get his legs to cooperate. "I just ran off. He must be freaking out, thinking I've left him."

"Okay, calm down. I'll drive you. You can't run back in this state."

"He'll never forgive me."

"He will," she said confidently. "You just need to use your fucking words." He let out a surprise laugh; Sarah wasn't one to curse out of nowhere. "You'd think a therapist would know this."

She drove him home, but didn't follow him inside. "Go get your man," she said encouragingly. Sam walked up to the door slowly, worried his legs would give up again. His muscles were going to ache for a week after this.

The door was unlocked, which was fortunate since he hadn't taken his keys either, and he was met with a wall of silence when he entered. For a moment he was worried that Bucky had left, but then he stumbled over a set of packed bags. He didn't know if they were Steve's or Bucky's, and didn't stop to check. He entered the kitchen, and saw Bucky standing by the sink. His eyes were red-rimmed, and it looked like he'd ran his fingers through his hair a million times over. If he hadn't changed his clothes, Sam would've thought he'd been standing there since he left.

Sam was so relieved that he was still there that he didn't even think twice before crossing the room and grabbing Bucky by the shoulders, pulling him into a desperate kiss. "I'm sorry," he whispered, before kissing him again. "I shouldn't have run off, I'm sorry." Bucky didn't kiss him back immediately, but he also didn't push him away, so that had to be a good sign at least.

"Okay, I got the last of your things, now we just..." Steve dropped the bag he was holding, staring at them wide-eyed as jumped broke apart. "Oh."

Sam stared at the bag, and then back up at Bucky. "You're leaving?"

"I thought I'd get a hotel room or something," he said slowly, uncertainly. His voice was hoarse, the way it got after he'd been either shouting or crying.

Sam backed away until his back hit the table. Bucky was leaving him.

"I told you, you can stay at Natasha's if...." Steve began.

"Stay out of this, Steve!" Sam snapped. "You need to back the fuck off and stay out of our business for a moment and let us figure our lives out."

Steve closed his mouth, his jaw tensing. He looked hurt, and any other day Sam would feel bad because he knew what it was like to be rejected by someone you loved. But right now he needed to figure this thing out with Bucky, and Steve was in the way.

"Steve is just trying to help me," Bucky said. "You left. I didn't know if you were coming back, and if you even wanted me here when you did."

"What did Steve say to you? What is it that made you think I wouldn't return?"

"He said he caught you, but then you ran off again."

"Did he mention the part where..."

"Sam, don't," Steve practically begged.

"Why not? It's not like he wouldn't have found out if I had chosen to stay and..." And this was the part he was trying to avoid. If he told the truth right now, he risked putting a dent in their friendship that might never heal.

"And what?" Bucky asked. "Sam, tell me."

Then again, he deserved to know. "He tried to kiss me."

Bucky froze. He didn't move, didn't speak, he didn't even seem to be breathing.

"It was a mistake," Steve said quickly. "Things today have been confusing. I wasn't thinking straight."

"That might be true," Sam said. "But it still happened."

"I have been living with the two of you for months, having to see you with your hands all over each other every day, and I never complained or tried to come between you. I just tried to stay out of your way, and I got a plan in motion to move out."

Bucky's body began shaking with barely-contained fury. He turned to look at Steve, and stalked forward slowly. Sam was reminded of a predator abouut to attack its prey. Steve took a step back, putting his hands up in surrender.

"I've been trying to be a good friend," he said desperately. "I slipped up  _once_ and I'm sorry." And he did sound genuinely sorry.

Sam grabbed Bucky's arm, stopping him from moving forward. "I think you should go now, Steve," he suggested. Steve cast Bucky a pleading look, but when he got no response, he nodded, picked up his bag, and left.

Bucky shook off Sam's hand and went to stand by the furthest wall.

"We need to talk," Sam said, stopping himself from following Bucky and hugging him tightly.

Bucky closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall. "Don't we always?"

"You want to marry me," it was a statement more than a question.

"Yes, and you ran off at the mere thought of it."

"I said I was sorry. I just needed a moment to think. You surprised me."

Bucky let out a deep breath. "Do you want to be with Steve?"

"No!" Sam exclaimed, probably louder than strictly necessary. "I want to be with you."

"But you used to be in love with him."

Sam swallowed. He'd never actually told Bucky that, but it seemed he'd figured it out somehow. "That was a long time ago. I'm well over it. Bucky, he tried to kiss me and I literally ran away from him."

"I wanted you from the moment that I got my head cleared up and was allowed to actually get to know you," Bucky said without opening his eyes. "But I thought there was something going on between you and Steve, and I didn't want to get in the middle of that. Then you climbed into bed with me, and I thought that was you telling me that you felt something for me too. But that wasn't the case, was it? You didn't feel anything for me. It was all about Steve."

"I..." Sam licked his lips. They were still dry after all the water he'd poured down his throat. "I don't know when I started loving you."

Bucky's whole body jumped, and he hit his eyes open.

"I don't have a specifik timeline of when it happened because it took me forever to figure the feeling out," Sam said. "But I know that I love you _now_. Isn't that what matters?"

"You left me." Bucky's voice cracked painfully.

"I didn't."

"I thought you were gone."

"I would never leave you." Sam walked up to him and grabbed his hands. "I told you I wouldn't." He pressed their foreheads together and closed his eyes. "I love you. Please forgive me."

Bucky took a deep breath. "I love you too."

It was such a relief to hear it. To know that he hadn't fucked it all up too badly. He titled his head up for a kiss, but Bucky turned his face away.

"But you don't want to marry me."

"Bucky, this thing that we have between us, it's a mess.  _We're_ a mess." He took Bucky's face in both his hands. Stubble had grown on his cheeks and it scratched against his palms. "We started off all wrong. I mean, you tried to kill me the first time we met."

Bucky flinched back. "That wasn't me, I wasn't..."

"I know!" Sam said quickly. "I was trying to make a joke but I realise it was in really poor taste.

That earned him a small smile. "It seems I'm not the only one with a bad sense of humor."

Sam snorted. "But the point remains. None of us made a move on the other; we only ended up sleeping together because Steve was trying it on with you. We moved in together before we even went on a proper date. I lead your group therapy sessions."

"I do go to another guy for private therapy, though."

"It's still kind of weird. Also, not the point and you know it."

Bucky sighed, but this time he didn't turn away when Sam gave him a light peck on the lips. "What now then?" he asked. "Should I go to a hotel and call for a date or something?"

"Don't move out," Sam pleaded.

"You just listed us moving in together too fast as a bad thing."

"Yes, but now we do live together and I want you to stay."

"Only if you promise to never run off again like that, because you scared me for real. I thought I'd lost you."

"I know, I know, I'm sorry." He rested his head against Bucky's shoulder, nosing his collarbone and breathing in the smell. "I won't ever do it again, I swear. Next time things get confusing, we sit down and talk about it."

"What do you want to do then?"

"Steve is the reason we got together," Sam said carefully. "He's been involved fromt he start. But I think we need to see what happens with our relationship when he's not here. I want to see how our relationship progresses on its own, without having to worry about anyone else's presence or feelings."

Bucky nodded. "Fair enough."

"Let's just give ourselves time, and see where we end up."

Bucky wrapped his arms around Sam and hugged him tightly. "Okay."

They stood there for a while, in complete silence, just holding each other. They were both still shaking with the residues of the fear of losing the other.

Suddenly, Bucky let out a loud groan.

Sam pulled back so he could see his face. "What's wrong?" he asked worriedly

"I have to go and punch Steve in the face."

"I wouldn't say you _have_ to do that."

"He tried to kiss my boyfriend. Either I hit him now, or I carry around my anger for years to come, unable to forgive him and ruin our friendship forever. And you're the one who always says that keeping emotions bottled up is a bad thing on your sessions."

"Yes, but I didn't really mean that violence was the answer."

"Yeah, well, we all have our ways." He smiled and kissed Sam, soft and sweet. "I am really angry with Steve right now, but he's still my friend. I can't just let him go."

"I know."

"But I'll tell him that he should give us some space for a while. I think he might even appreciate it; it will give him time to move on with this life, away from the two of us."

"You'll tell him this before or after you punch him?" Sam teased.

Bucky shrugged. "It depends on how angry I get when I see him."

"I just want the record to state that I was against the violence."

Bucky laughed and kissed him again. "Duly noted." He stroked Sam's cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too."

*

While Bucky went to sort out whatever it was he needed to sort out with Steve, Sam set to unpacking all of Bucky's things. Then he went and took a long, hot bath. His legs were still aching, and he let out an appreciative moan when the warm water touched his sensitive skin. It felt good to get clean. Quite frankly, he wasn't sure how Bucky had been able to stand so close to him when he smelled like sweat and vomit.

He stayed in until the water got too cold, and then had to practically crawl out of the tub. He staggered into the bedroom and managed to jump into a pair of boxers and a t-shirt before collapsing in bed. He didn't wake up until the door was thrown open. He squinted at the bedside watch. Was it really only nine-thirty? It felt like a year had gone by since this morning.

He stumbled out of bed, rubbing his eyes sleepily. Bucky was back, holding a large box in his hands.

"What's that?" Sam asked, yawning widely.

Bucky opened the box and presented its contents. "Twenty spices. So I can cook for you for our first official date." Sam laughed, shaking his head fondly. "I also talked to Fury, and SHIELD will be giving me a salary, albeit a small one since they're still rebuilding. So I can start with the whole rent thing."

"You don't have to."

"Yes, I do. If we're going to do this whole couple thing, things need to be equal between us. I haven't been pulling my weight around the house, but I will from now on."

Sam put his arm around Bucky's shoulders and kissed his cheek. "If you insist." He took Bucky's flesh hand, and inspected it. The skin was smooth. "You didn't punch him."

"Yes I did." He held up the metal arm, and when he twisted it in the light Sam caught sight of specks of blood. "I was apparently angrier than I thought. He understood, though. Took it like a champ the first time."

"The first time?"

"As I said, I was angrier than I thought. I tried to punch him again, but he stopped me. Said one was all he was going to take without a fight."

"Did you fight?"

"No." Bucky sounded oddly disappointed by that. "We just sat down and had a proper, adult conversation. He said he was sorry, and said he was happy that we were together. Then I told him we needed space, and he understood and said he needed time too. Then we agreed to remain friends."

"I'm glad."

"He wants to be friends with you again too, you know."

Sam shrugged and go of Bucky. "Maybe at some point. But right now I'm hungry."

"I'll cook. With spices."

"Oh, now you're just trying to turn me on."

"Is it working?"

Sam kissed him as an answer. They got lost in it for a few moments, kissing back and forth languidly. But Bucky eventually broke it off. "Stop distracting me."

"Wash your hands," Sam warned him. "No blood in the food."

"I'm not _that_ bad at cooking, you know," Bucky said, slightly offended. "I know about basic hygiene." But he still washed his hands dutifully under Sam's watchful eyes.

Sam was regulated to sallad duty, while Bucky pulled out a chicken. Sam did his best to stay out of the way and let Bucky do his thing, but the last memory time he tried Bucky's chicken still haunted him. He set the table and lit some candles, because this was supposed to be a romantic date.

It was almost eleven by the time they were ready to eat. Bucky stared at him expectantly as he took his first bite. He'd been trying so hard not to repeat past mistakes that he'd basically ended up emptying half the spices over the chicken, and Sam was not prepared. He had to chug down half a bottle of milk just to stop his throat from burning, but still, he appreciated the effort.

"I'm sorry," Bucky said, as Sam was wiping the tears out of his eyes.

"No, don't be. It was great."

"Really? Because I couldn't even get a bite down."

They both started laughing, and it felt so incredibly good to just sit there and have fun with each other. Sam couldn't remember the last time he felt this genuinely happy.

"You know, I've been thinking." Bucky put the chicken away, and they ended up splitting the sallad and opening a bottle of wine. It was pretty bleak, as far as dinners go, but it was pretty nice nonetheless. "This is the type of scenario where the proposal would have worked out better. With the candles and all."

Sam clasped Bucky's hand on the table. "I thought we agreed. It's too soon to consider marriage."

"I know," Bucky assured him. "I jumped the gun on that one. Didn't really think it through."

Sam nodded and lifted the wine glass to his lips.

"But..."

Sam stopped before he could take a sip. "But what?"

"Getting engaged doesn't necessarily mean getting married right now. Plenty of people are engaged for years without getting married. It's mostly symbolic, really."

Sam sighed and put the glass down. "If I wear the ring, will it stop you from humping my leg every time we leave the house?"

Bucky's smile was a thing of great beauty. "I'll consider it."

Sam shook his head, but he couldn't help but match his smile. "Fine. As long as we're both clear that we're not ready to..."

Bucky was already out of his seat, on his way to the bedroom. Sam left the table as it was, too tired to do the dishes, and went to sit in the living room. Bucky returned a moment later with the ring.

"Do you want me to ask you properly, or...?"

"Just put it on." Sam held his left hand out for Bucky. "We've gone past the proposal stage."

Bucky snorted and took Sam's hand, sitting down next to him. He slid the ring on slowly, and the cold metal fit perfectly. Sam hadn't had the chance to inspect the ring earlier, but now he realised it looked like a piece of Bucky's prosthetic. The ring was shining silver, overlapping like the pieces on Bucky's arm. He had no idea how Bucky'd managed to pull this together. The sight of it made his heart speed up almost frantically. It felt like he had a piece of Bucky to carry around with him, always.

"There we go," Sam said, slightly out of breath. He put his hand against his chest so the ring would stand out clearly against his black shirt. "Now everyone will know I'm with you."

Bucky's mouth fell open, his pupils widening. Sam leaned forward and put his hand on Bucky's groin, and he let out a hiss. He was already hard, without even touching or kissing Sam.

"You're so predictable," Sam laughed. "Come here."

They met in the middle, sharing short but sweet kisses. Sam could tell that Bucky wanted to speed things up, but he took his time simple feeling Bucky. He ran his fingers through Bucky's hair, over his shoulders, down his chest.

"I love you," he murmured between kisses.

"And I love you." Bucky kissed his cheek, down his neck. "Let's go to the bedroom."

"I'm fine here. It's not like anyone is going to walk in on us anymore."

Bucky shook his head and pulled back, getting back on his feet. "This is the first time we sleep together as an engaged couple. I want it to happen in our bed."

 _Our bed_. The words sent shivers down Sam's spine. He let Bucky help him on his feet and lead the way to the bedroom. They laid down on their sides, tangling their legs together, and kissed slowly and languidly. Their chests were pressed closely together, and Sam could feel his every breath.

"I want you," Bucky said against his lips, grinding down against Sam's thigh.

"I want you too," Sam said, "but I don't think I can go again after this morning."

"I can."

Sam stroked Bucky's cheek, down to his lips. "You don't have to feel like you have to." He took Bucky's hand and lifted it to his lips. "There are other ways to get off." He sucked in two digits, running his tongue over the pads of his fingers. Bucky let out a low moan, his hips stuttering forward.

"I know." He pulled his fingers out of Sam's mouth and ran them down his cheek, spreading the spit around. "But I want you inside of me."

This time Sam was the one who lost control of his hips. He ground down again Bucky's thigh, desperately chasing any kind of friction.

"Are you sure?" he couldn't help but ask, even though he was already reaching for the lube. "Have you bottomed before?"

"No," Bucky admitted. "But I've been fingered before."

It was ridiculous to feel jealous; this was probably from before he was even born. But he still got annoyed that someone else had touched Bucky before him. "I'll make you forget all about him," he growled, capturing Bucky's lips for a biting kiss.

"Look who's the jealous one now," Bucky said, amused.

"You've rubbed off on me."

Bucky rubbed his groin against Sam's leg again. "Seems I am."

Sam laughed, and pushed Bucky's shoulder. He got Bucky out of his shirt, and then to lie down on his back. He loved seeing Bucky like this; spread out on the bed, completely relaxed, his lips kiss-swollen. Sam ran his hands down Bucky's chest, tracing every scar, every wound, and then followed his hands with his lips. Bucky let out soft, breathless moans, his body twitching under Sam's lips, but he didn't try to move. He just laid there and allowed Sam to explore.

He scraped his nails over Bucky's sides, and kissed down his happy trail. He tugged at Bucky's sweats, and Bucky lifted his hips to make it easier to get them off. Bucky was already hard, the head of his cock sticking out through the flap in the boxers. Sam licked off a few beads of precome, and Bucky let out a curse, his thighs tensing.

"Spread your legs," Sam whispered, even though they were the only ones in the apartment. Bucky let him pull down the boxers and push his thighs apart.

He opened the bottle of lube, coated a fingers, and circled the rim carefully. Bucky shuddered, but he didn't tense or give any sign of regret or discomfort, so Sam proceeded and pushed a fingers inside.

Bucky's thighs immediately turned rock hard. He let out a deep breath.

"Okay?" Sam asked, concerned.

"Yeah, keep going."

Sam licked up Bucky's cock, all the way from the balls to the head. The first time he'd had someone inside of him, his partner had sucked his cock, and he remembered it making things easier somehow. The pleasure took away from the initial burn and discomfort. He sucked the head of Bucky's cock into his mouth, sliding his tongue over the slit. While Bucky was moaning in pleasure, he pressed in another finger. He crooked his fingers, feeling around inside of Bucky, until he found the spot that made Bucky curse loudly in Russian and arch his back.

Sam pulled off Bucky's cock with a wet  _pop_. "Good?" he asked hoarsely.

"Fuck, yes, yes, right there."

Sam kept pulling his fingers out and pushing them in again, pressing up against Bucky's prostate every time. His cock was leaking precome over his stomach, and Sam moved to lick it off.

"Stop!" Bucky exclaimed, his whole body tense like a bowstring. Sam pulled back cautiously, and stopped his fingers' movements. "If you keep going like this I'll come, and I don't want to do that until you're in me."

Sam's cock was already straining to get out, but now he thought he might combust with want. He struggled out of his boxers and shirt, and got on top of Bucky. He bracketed Bucky's head with his forearms and kissed him deeply.

"I love you."

"Mhm." Bucky spread his legs wider, giving him space to lie down between them. "Love you too."

Sam kept kissing him, grinding their hips together in shallow thrusts. "You know what I'm going to do?"

"Fuck me?" Bucky suggested with a teasing smile.

"Going to make you mine."

Bucky closed his eyes, his hips thrusting up involuntarily.

"Just like you always do when you fill me with your cock," Sam kissed over his cheek, down to his neck, and scraped his teeth over Bucky's pulse. "I'm going to do that to you now."

"Yes," Bucky said desperately. "Do it, come on. I want you." He pulled his legs up, cradling Sam between his thighs and giving him easier access.

Sam reached down and took hold of his own cock, positioning it at Bucky's rim. "Ready?"

Bucky nodded, digging his heels into Sam's back. "Come on, now."

Sam pressed forward slowly. The head of his cock pushed through the tight ring of muscles, and Bucky made a sound like he'd been punched in the gut. Sam supported himself on his forearms again, pressing his forehead against Bucky's, and kept pushing forward. It was a tight fit, and the drag of Bucky's skin over his cock felt almost surreal.

"Fuck," he panted. "So tight, so good, damn it _Bucky_." He pushed all the way inside, his pelvis pressing up against Bucky's ass, and let out a deep breath. He did his best not to move, allowing Bucky time to get used to the feeling of having him inside. His arms were shaking with the effort of holding his body up, and he felt sweat pooling on his back.

They stayed like that for a while, simply sharing their breaths as Bucky adjusted to his size. Sam's entire body was trembling. He could feel every inch of Bucky, inside and out.

Bucky grabbed his neck in both hands. "You can move," he whispered against his lips.

Move was all that Sam wanted to do, but he still decided to give Bucky another moment. "Are you sure?"

"Just be careful."

Sam nodded. He'd been planning to do that anyway. He pulled out slowly, revelling at the friction, and then pushed back inside. They both groaned simultaneously, making Sam believe he'd found Bucky's prostate again. He pulled out again, but this time when he tried to push back in his thighs decided to remind him that he'd completely worn out his muscles, and he let out a groan that was more pain than pleasure.

"What is it?" Bucky asked, concerned.

"Nothing, let's just..." Sam pulled out all the way and grabbed Bucky's shoulders, encouraging him to sit up. Bucky looked confused, but allowed himself to be manhandled until Sam was sitting against the headboard and Bucky was straddling his legs. "Let's do it like this." It put less stress on his legs and back. Honestly, he was starting to feel old. "Is that okay?"

"Everything is okay, if you just get inside of me again," Bucky said. He got up on his knees, and let Sam position his cock again.

Bucky sunk down slowly, making them both catch their breaths at the feeling of the stretch. He threw his head back, allowing Sam plenty of skin to kiss and suck on as Bucky worked himself open.

"Fuck, you're beautiful," Sam panted. "I should've have fucked you sooner. You look so good on my cock."

Bucky let out a choked sob and sunk all the way down until he was sitting on Sam's lap. Sam got an odd sense of déjà vu from their first night together. He remembered sitting on Bucky's lap, the feeling of his arms surrounding him, the cut-off moans they'd both made.

Sam pushed Bucky's damp hair out of his face, just like he did back then. But it felt different. Not just because he was the one inside of Bucky the time, not the other way around. Their movements were less hurried and desperate, and it was less about finding release. He  _knew_ Bucky know, in a way he hadn't known him before. He loved Bucky in a way he never through possible.

Their eyes met, and he somehow knew that Bucky was thinking the same thing. Sam leaned forward and kissed him, swallowing his moans every time he rocked his hips. The pace was slow, Bucky lifting himself up and pushing himself down in his own time. Sam grabbed Bucky's ass, and pressed a finger down to his hole, so he could feel every time his cock moved in and out of Bucky. His breathing became strained, and he could do little more than pant into Bucky's mouth and let out loud moans, while Bucky fucked himself on his cock. The orgasm built slowly, but Sam had a feeling it would be all the more powerful because of it.

"Come on," Bucky panted, trailing sloppy kisses over Sam's cheek. "Come in me."

Sam didn't have to be told twice. He managed to get his legs to cooperate long enough to shove his hips up and meet Bucky's thrusts. He took a bruising grip on Bucky's hips, urging him to go faster and faster, until he began clenching around Sam's cock. Sam came with a loud shout that he was sure would go through the walls to the neighbours, stealing all the air out of his lungs, his whole body sparkling with pleasure.

Bucky kept grinding down on his cock after he was done. Sam let out a whine because of the over sensitivity, but didn't try to stop Bucky from continuing to chase his own release. He grabbed Bucky's cock and jerked him off, twisting his hand just the way he knew Bucky liked it, and Bucky's whole body arched when he came all over Sam's chest.

They collapsed to their sides, too exhausted to move or even speak. They just laid there, next to each other, as the sweat cooled on their bodies. Sam put the last piece of energy left in his body to reach for a tissue from the bedside table to wipe of the semen on his chest, but Bucky grabbed his arm and stopped him. "Leave it there."

Sam couldn't help but laugh. "Is this going to be a thing now?"

"Don't pretend you didn't enjoy coming in me just now," Bucky huffed. Sam couldn't, so all he did was lean forward and give Bucky some lazy kisses. Bucky wrapped his arms around him, and encouraged him to come rest his head on Bucky's chest. He took Sam's left hand, and ran his finger over the ring.

Sam was halfway to dozing off, when Bucky asked, "Are we still meeting your sister tomorrow, by the way?"

Sam hit his eyes open. "New rule; no mentioning my family members after you've just given me a mind-blowing orgasm and I'm still covered in your cum."

Bucky snorted. "Right." He kept fiddling with Sam's ring. "But are we?"

Sam rolled his eyes. "Yes."

"And are you going to wear the ring when we do?"

Sam hadn't considered that. He started laughing. "She's going to freak when I introduce you as my fiancé." He got up on his elbow so he could look Bucky in the face. "You better not encourage her if she starts looking for wedding venues."

"Of course." Sam relaxed and laid his head back down again. "I already know where we'll be getting married."

Sam wasn't sure if he was joking or not, and at this point he honestly didn't care. He smiled, and kissed Bucky right over his heart. "I love you, Bucky Barnes."

"I love you too, Sam Wilson."


End file.
